Abnormalities In Time
by Trunkssan766
Summary: The final battle between Vegetto and Zamasu unleashed an enormous explosion of energy, ripping apart the fabric of time and space, causing an unstable imbalance. Only Trunks and his patrol can restore its delicate order. But unbeknownst to either side, much greater things are to come. [Co-author with Trevaacin] [multi-AUs!] [Vegettoxfem!Merged Zamasu]
1. Chapter 1

**Welcome to Abnormalities In Time. It was originally going to be titled Merged Timelines _,_ but the name kinda sucked and didn't fit, so I changed it. **

**Yes, this is gonna be a Vegetto x fem!Merged Zamasu story mixed with multiple AUs (multiverse theory and the butterfly effect, aka, multiple different timelines as a result from multiple changes in time) and Xenoverse/DB-Online. Weird, huh? To think that this could've been TWO separate stories when it was first thought out. You know something even weirder? This was brought forth because of some fanart I found lol.**

 **I'll explain more at the bottom. Enjoy.**

* * *

 **Prologue**

 _Ruins. Ruins everywhere. That's all that remained of the once beautiful West City. Such a horrid sight, it was. The clean sidewalks and black streets now nothing more than dirt roads, scattered with several craters here and there due to all the destruction that had occurred in the past year. Tall buildings, magnificent skyscrapers, torn to pieces, their rubble littering the ground where they once stood. Restaurants, homes, businesses, all gone at the hands of the terror that had been plaguing the planet for what seemed like an eternity. The sky, once the only source of light in a dismal world, was perpetually overcast, the dark clouds that covered it eerily silent save for the occasional crackle of lightning. But no rain, never that. It seemed even the sky had abandoned its purpose. The world was back to what it once was: a living nightmare._

 _He was exhausted. So, so exhausted. No matter how hard he tried, he had no choice but to run. Everytime he tried to fight back, he was pushed back down, like a misbehaved dog. He wanted to fight, to resist this cruel monster's game up until the very end. But his mother had kept telling him that he needed to live. Now wasn't a time to be stubborn, she had said. And she was right. He was the only one who could protect the Earth, even if he lost each and every battle. Even after his mother had been killed, even after that boiling rage that he wanted nothing more than to give into and rip that freak to shreds, he was forced to run. He was sane enough to know that his efforts would be pointless, and so he ran. He made his way through the battle worn city, sneaking around like a snake._

 _He could practically hear his father's scowl. He'd probably glare and berate him for being such a coward. He clenched his fists._

 _'I'm not like you father. I don't have this pride you kept telling me about' Trunks peeked his head out, and seeing the coast was clear, made a break for it._

 _'And I probably never will.'_

 _..._

 _"How...dare you...kill…Mai…" Trunks' eyes flashed into an angry teal, with bio-electricity starting to spark to life in response to his anger over the death of Mai. The man responsible for his anger and despair for the past year only smirked, enjoying the rage clear on the half-breed saiyan's face._

 _"RAAAAH!" Trunks burst into the Super Saiyan 2 state. He put his open palms above his head, charging an enormous amount of energy into them, surprising the corrupted Kaioshin for a brief moment before Trunks unleashed the attack._

 _"MASENKO!" Goku Black crossed his arms in order to block the attack, though he underestimated its power. He grunted, and went flying past the building wall. His feet made dents on the ground as he was dragged back. He unleashed a small shockwave that canceled the energy blast. He looked up to see Trunks coming down, ready to cut him down. But surprisingly, he instead stabbed his sword in front of him, backflipping with its momentum, and threw himself at Black, landing a sucker punch that stunned the self proclaimed god. Trunks continued his assault, but Black easily caught his fist, and blasted him in the abdomen. Trunks was sent flying back, but caught the handle of his sword to steady himself. He picked it up, and swung the blade, throwing the chunk of earth that had been stuck on it. Goku Black only smirked, and put two fingers to his forehead, vanishing. He appeared behind Trunks, digging his elbow into the half breed's back, causing him to drop back to his normal state._

 _"Fool. Did you really think you could defeat me with such a pathetic attack?" Black lifted the sword, and positioned it pointing downwards._

 _"How poetic do you think it would be to die by your beloved sword?"_

 _Trunks could only grunt in response, still in pain from the last blow._

 _"With you gone, it'll all be over. Humanity's final hope will be wiped out right here."_

 _'_ No matter what happens Trunks, you must survive! You're our only hope… _'_

 _'_ Mother… _'_

 _'_ You're our only hope! You're the one that has to live! _'_

 _'_ Mai… _'_

 _Black grinned maliciously. "Die Trunks." He brought the sword down, and Trunks instinctively reacted by pulling the sash of his scabbard, the sword hitting it instead and being thrown away elsewhere. He transformed and unleashed an explosion, causing a large smoke cloud to cover the entire area, allowing Trunks to escape, transforming back into his normal state and sheathing his sword back in its scabbard as he did so. He ran back inside the worn down Capsule Corporation, heading towards his final hope._

...

 _"HA!" Trunks powered up into Super Saiyan 2, surprising Goku, who had not expected Trunks to gain so much power since the last time they met. It made him feel giddy._

 _"Whoa, you've gotten really strong Trunks!" Goku powered up to the equivalent, and charged him. With each punch thrown, Goku found it harder to keep up. Trunks easily blocked every blow, and retaliated with one of his own every now and then._

 _Goku went in for his face, but Trunks ducked under him. Placing both hands on the ground, Trunks kicked upwards, sending the full blooded saiyan to the skies, right on his tail not a second later. He came down on Goku with a slash. Goku blocked it with his ki coated finger, but gritted his teeth at the sheer force behind it. The struggle commenced once again, with Goku barely able to block and parry Trunks' sword strikes. Goku kicked him in the stomach, putting some distance between the two. He couldn't help but smirk, impressed._

 _"Incredible! You're way more powerful than you were against Cell."_

 _"I've been training intensely for over ten years, Goku."_

 _Goku chuckled. "Then let me show you-" he began releasing an enormous amount of energy, "-something new!" With a shout, a large shockwave resounded throughout the area. Trunks' eyes widened, seeing the newly transformed Goku._

 _"W-What?!" Goku smugly rubbed under his nose with his finger._

 _"This is a step above your current level. I call it, Super Saiyan 3." Trunks blinked, before smiling._

 _"Another level…not surprising when it's coming from you, Goku. But…" He flipped his sword and held it in an icepick grip, crouching low. "I was never satisfied with this level of power either."_

 _"HA!" Goku's eyes widened at the sudden increase in power._

 _"RAAAH!" Trunks swung his sword as he charged at the surprised saiyan._

...

 _"HAAA!" Violent pink energy swirled to life around Goku Black, and his hair turned bright pink as it rose to adopt the all too familiar shape he'd seen more than a handful of times on his doppleganger, his eyes shifting to a cold grey._

 _Black cackled maniacally. He raised his hand, and clenched it, feeling the power of a god run through is veins, "Such power…so this is the power of beyond a Super Saiyan God…" he turned his attention back towards the trio._

 _"I should congratulate you mortals. For it is thanks to you, that I have attained this power. So, in your honor, I will keep in line with your naming choice-" he spread his hands in a condescending manner "-and name this state Super Saiyan Rosé."_

 _"Um, Vegeta, maybe we should start fighting together now?" Goku said worriedly. He was having trouble sensing Black's power because it seemed suppressed, but the pressure he radiated was intense._

 _Vegeta scoffed. "Don't make me laugh Kakarot. Just take care of the other one. This isn't going to go anywhere if he keeps getting stronger."_

 _Goku smacked his fist against his open palm. "Oh right!" He turned his attention to the green Kaioshin. "Hey you! Um, Zamasu! You're fighting me!"_

 _Zamasu quirked an eyebrow, "Very well."_

 _They flew off to god knows where, leaving Vegeta and Black to their business. They powered up their respective Blue and Rosé forms, and charged at each other._

...

 _"Vegeta! Finish them off, NOW!" Vegeta looked confused, and Goku noticed that Black had switched his earring to the other side, which was now glowing. Goku growled, putting in as much energy as he could with what little time they had before it happened. Black and Zamasu's forms twitched as they were hit with the blast, an explosion roaring shortly afterwards._

 _Vegeta turned towards his fellow Super Saiyan God, irritated as hell._

 _"What the hell was that about, Kakarot?!"_

 _Off to the sides, Shin watched with horror at the event that just transgressed. They were all doomed. "N-No…" he dropped to his knees, and Gowasu looked at him with understanding, unlike Trunks and Mai who were both rather confused._

 _Two feet landed on the ground. "Harken mortals. You should be grateful to lay eyes on this form." Goku and Vegeta slowly turned their heads, their expressions full of shock and fear._

 _The fallen Kaioshin grinned. "The one and only true god in this universe...witness the birth of God Zamasu."_

...

 _A huge blast tore through the building Zamasu thought they were hiding, completely catching him off guard and tearing right through his right side. The blast kept going, traveling to depths of space. Zamasu was so shocked that it took him a few seconds to realize he was missing his right side. With a shout, he had regenerated completely, but he was still pissed._

 _"I blew off your arm, and you grew it back like it was nothing. That's going to be annoying."_

 _Zamasu glared angrily at this new...appearance. He wasn't sure if it was Goku or Vegeta, but he didn't care._

 _"You...what is that form?" he had never witnessed such a transformation before, not by the saiyans._

 _"The name's Vegetto, and like you, I too was created by the Potara fusion." Vegetto finished his introduction with a cocky stance and smirk, which he had inherited from Vegeta._

 _Zamasu was surprised by this. "A fusion between mortals?" such a thing was utter blasphemy._

 _"Oh? You didn't know we could do that too? Not like it was the first time." Vegetto said with a chuckle. "Then I'll tell you something else you don't know."_

 _A vein started to pop out of Zamasu's forehead. "What?"_

 _Vegetto's smirk stayed intact. "Your fusion is too unstable. Because your immortality is unbalanced by your non-immortal side, you'll defuse in about an hour"_

 _Zamasu looked downright furious, before his body relaxed and he gave a smirk. "Oh well. So be it then. One hour will be enough to end you, mortal."_

 _Vegetto scoffed. "Don't misunderstand. I don't intend for this to continue on any longer." He took out a senzu bean from his sash, and ate it. He buffed up for a second before returning to normal. "Much better. And now, I'd like to show you something great." He crouched down, the wind blowing much harder than it had before. Vegetto's form began to engulf itself in blue ki._

 _"This...is...Vegetto...BLUE!" Vegetto's aura exploded into glass-like shards, now in his Super Saiyan Blue state. He smirked, his very aura lashing out in a threatening manner, as Zamasu stepped back in worry._

 _"I will give you no time to regenerate. I will erase you completely, Zamasu."_

 _..._

 _Trunks had just finished healing his father, now feeling drained of his stamina. He nearly collapsed to the ground, but was thankfully caught by Mai._

 _"Trunks!" He looked up, still out of breath. "It's alright Mai. I'm fine." he looked to his father, who was still examining himself. "Father?"_

 _Vegeta returned his gaze, "Stay out of the way Trunks. Same goes with everyone else." he looked back in front of him, where Goku was taking the beating of his life. "I'm going to finish Zamasu once and for all."_

 _Trunks smiled. "Go get him father." Vegeta bursted into Super Saiyan Blue and flew towards the battlefield, where Zamasu was going to finish off Goku once and for all._

 _"Tsk. Gutless trash passed out already." He raised his hand, a ki blast beginning to form. "So be it."_

 _"Hold it right there, Zamasu!" Zamasu stopped at the sight of Vegeta in his Super Saiyan Blue transformation._

 _"Kakarot has far more guts than you ever will, you pathetic god. Don't be a hypocrite." Zamasu growled at the insult, before realizing Vegeta looked completely healed._

 _"Wait. How are you-" Vegeta cut him off. "My son healed me." Shin appeared right before Goku, and then took him away, via teleportation. Both Vegeta and Zamasu noticed, but didn't comment on it._

 _"It's time to show you the true power FAR beyond that of a Super Saiyan God." Vegeta's blue god aura reappeared as he said this. Zamasu scoffed, not at all in the mood for jokes._

 _"True power? When will you cease this pathetic show?! That transformation means nothing against a true god! So enough!" Vegeta ignored his useless rambling, and concentrated. His blue aura sucked itself into his body, only leaving a small bit of steam coming out. A bit of sweat trailed down his face, as he got into a stance. Zamasu frowned as he sensed something about Vegeta had changed, but couldn't tell what it was. Nonetheless, he charged at the saiyan, throwing a punch. What surprised him was how Vegeta caught it without any type of visible strain, shocking the Kaioshin. Vegeta smirked._

 _"It's over for you, Zamasu."_

...

 _"Damn it...this is going to be my final attack…" blue energy began forming around Vegeta's fist, like an aura for his hand._

 _"Hey! What's father doing?" Trunks was curious to know what his father's next move would be. According to Goku, he didn't have much time left to fight at Super Saiyan Blue's max power._

 _"Vegeta's gonna use up all of Blue's power in his next attack." Everyone gasped._

 _"B-But if he does that, then-" Goku nodded, knowing what Trunks was saying._

 _"I know. This is Vegeta's last chance to finish this."_

 _Back at the battlefield, Zamasu stood up, having finally snapped. His aura exploded around him._

 _"THAT'S IT! I'M GOING TO DESTROY YOU AND EVERYTHING IN THE UNIVERSE!" Zamasu blasted towards Vegeta like a mad bull on steroids. Vegeta launched himself at Zamasu. As they closed in on one other, Vegeta shut his eyes, and stuck out his other hand in front of his face._

 _"Solar Flare!" Zamasu screamed as he was blinded by the same damn technique yet again. Vegeta took the chance, and threw out his arm._

 _"HAKAI!"_

...

 _"Time to wipe you all out." Zamasu pointed his hand at the group of heroes. Vegeta was on the ground, back to base form, Goku himself barely standing, and Trunks was the least helpful of the crew. Mai was unconscious, and the Kaioshins of universe 7 and 10 were as helpful as ants._

 _"Damn it...it can't end like this!.." Goku looked down, ashamed of himself for being so defenseless. He couldn't even use regular Super Saiyan like this…_

 _"Now, perish along with this plan-" Zamasu stopped, feeling something strange within himself, before finding himself split in two. Well, not exactly._

 _"The fusion's ended...but, what's going on?!" everyone watched in disgust as Black and Zamasu were kept intact by some type of goo, forcing them to reattach._

 _"I am the one true god...there is no need for any more!"_

 _Gowasu began to sweat. "It would seem that Goku Black and Zamasu have merged on a cellular level, as even if we call it a fusion, they are still the same being."_

 _Just as the fusion seemed to take place again, the two were cut in half. By a sword. They fell on either side, Black now having reverted back to base._

 _Trunks stabbed his sword into Black's body, ending the nightmare once and for all. "Black...it's over now…"_

 _Vegeta stood up, having witnessed the whole thing. "Well. That take cares of one. But what about-" he stopped as Trunks was knocked aside by...Black?!_

 _"What?!" Indeed, Black stood up as if the sword in his chest was nothing. He even pulled it out, and crushed it, his wound having healed itself. Vegeta stepped back, and bumped into someone. He turned around to see...Zamasu?!_

 _"H-How, how are you two still…?" Their forms melted and became God Zamasu once again. Except now, he'd be dealing with two._

 _'Oh shit.' was everyone's thoughts._

...

 _"Oh I almost forgot about this." Goku clicked the button, and out appeared Zeno. The army of God Zamasus froze._

 _"ZENO?!" they all shouted in unison. Needless to say, Zamasu was terrified by the King of All._

 _"Hey Lord Zeno!" Goku hugged him, much to Vegeta's, and the Kaioshins' shock, and to the confusion of Trunks and Mai. He dropped him, and the King of All looked up at him, being blunt, asked "Did you do all this?"_

 _Goku shook his head. "Nope. It was all those guys over there." he snitched on the Zamasus, who all looked like they were ready pass out._

 _Zeno tilted his head, and pursed his lips "Hmm. I don't like him."_

 _"I know right? Can you erase him?" Zeno hummed before shrugging._

 _"Okay." As soon as Zeno said that, the Zamasus began to run away. Zeno floated up the air, his hands glowing with a bright light._

 _"This world…shouldn't exist anymore."_

...

 _ **Time Nest, Unknown Age**_

He stared down at the Scroll of Eternity in his hands. It had been so long since he had last seen his world, which had been completely erased by the hands of Lord Zeno. He didn't blame the Lord of All, only Zamasu, as he was the reason his world had to be destroyed in the first place. But he couldn't throw all the blame on Zamasu, try as he might, as it had been mostly his fault as well. If only he hadn't gone back in time, none of this would've happened…no. He had to stop thinking like that. There was no point dwelling on the past. He could only focus on the present.

'I can't believe I'm still thinking like this.' he thought with a shake of his head. He rolled up the Scroll of Eternity, and put it away with the rest, where hundreds upon thousands of scrolls existed, each of which belonging to a different event, universe or even timeline. It felt nostalgic, in an odd sort of way, to be surrounded by his own history, mixed with those of his friends, family, and every other person in the cosmos. Trunks sighed, 'Barely even thirty, so why do I feel so removed from it all?' With some effort, the swordsman turned his back on the mass of scrolls (which was easier said than done, in a room surrounded by them), and headed towards the doorway. Maybe some fresh air would clear his thoughts.

Trunks exited the Time Vault, passing by the small house in which the Kais resided in. Around it were several pieces of junk he had been experimenting with, in order to help the Patrol better complete their missions. Elder Kai had complained about it several times, and that the Time Nest should be much more tidier than this. Lady Chronoa hadn't minded at all, in fact she always seemed rather excited about the machines that he always tinkered and experimented with. She was much more...different than Shin, from what he remembered of the Kaioshin. Less professional, and more hyper in terms of personality. But Chronoa on the other hand, had radiated an aura of maturity and experience that Shin didn't seem to have.

Trunks couldn't sense either of them here, which he was grateful for.

"Your senses have dulled, my boy." Trunks jumped, and turned around. His hand was gripped tightly on the handle of his sword. He relaxed seeing it was just Elder Kai sitting at the tea table. He was quietly stirring his tea as he stared at Trunks.

"Oh, it's only you Elder Kai." his relief turned to confusion. "Wait, you weren't there before."

Elder Kai shook his head, muttering something about 'youngins'. "My boy, relying on purely sensing ki isn't a good thing you know. It's good to rely on your natural senses too you know-" he gave him a pointed look "-especially your eyes. Then maybe, you might've noticed me here, drinking my tea." he took a sip and set it down, giving an irritated sigh. "I swear, this sugar is useless."

Trunks ignored that part, not quite understanding what Elder Kai was saying.

"I do use all of my senses, Elder Kai. Gohan, my father, and portions of history has taught me that. Relying solely on my eyes would cost me."

"Ah, and they were all wise warriors, the people that you learned that from. But I'm referring to everyday life, and yet you seem to be on edge all the time Trunks." Elder Kai said.

"I was also taught you could be attacked at any moment, you know." Trunks pointed out. Elder Kai wagged his wrinkled finger. "We're not living in an apocalypse, Trunks. There is no need to be on edge all the time." he stopped stirring the cup of tea, setting the small spoon aside. He got up, and walked towards the young half breed saiyan. "What is troubling you, young saiyan?"

Trunks sighed, and continued on his way towards Conton City. "Nothing Elder Kai. It really is nothing." he glanced back the old Kai. "I have to go see meet my wife, if you excuse me my lord." He had promised Mai some dinner this afternoon.

Elder Kai watched with a somber expression as Trunks walked away. "That boy...his past still haunts him, his mistakes on his mind constantly." Not that he blamed him. Trunks' life...what a depressing existence. Depressing indeed. He hid it all from everyone, even his own wife, with this facade of happiness, fake bravery and heroism.

'Everyone is afraid of failure...failing themselves and the people around them. But it should never be to this extent. It's unhealthy.' Elder Kai walked away, heading into the small house built for the Kais.

Unbeknownst to anyone however, multiple scrolls lit up with a dark, corrupted energy. One of them was what people would consider an irrelevant, yet important event in history. It was of an event in universe 10.

* * *

 _ **Universe 10, Kaioshin Realm, 3,000,000 Years before Age**_

The Sacred World of the Kais was a beautiful planet indeed, with its yellow skies and its green grass terrains and many pink moons.

Though...it was lonely. Gowasu could definitely say that much. He was rather disappointed when his master had passed away long ago, and ever since then, he woke up to nothing but absolute silence. He didn't even hear the chirping of birds, as this realm had no such creatures. For some reason, the Kaishin Trees hadn't produced any new Kais, which was a bit concerning to say the least. He and the Grand Kai had checked the Kaishin Trees several times, but it bore no fruit. It would seem that this time it was just a slow grower. Which wasn't very comforting to say the least. Gowasu was beginning to grow old in age, and he needed to find a worthy apprentice soon. Yet it seemed there was no one out there that was ready to take the position.

'How dreadful.' Gowasu thought with a sigh. He picked up his cup of tea, and took a sip of the warm brew. Even the tea reflected his current mood. How dull…

As Gowasu drank more tea, he felt a slight ringing in the back of his head. It would seem he was being contacted. He set his tea down, and decided to respond to it.

"Yes, hello?" he said out loud.

" _Hello? Lord Gowasu?_ " said a feminine voice, one that he had not heard in several decades.

"Ah, Grand Kai. It has been a while." Gowasu said, pleasantly happy he had someone to talk to now, even if the Grand Kai had probably called on an urgent matter. He was just that lonely nowadays.

" _Indeed it has, my lord. Now, as much as I'd LOVE to chat, I actually want to talk to you about something._ " This made Gowasu raise an eyebrow.

"Oh? And whatever for?"

" _You are in need of an apprentice, am I wrong?_ " this made Gowasu frown. He had not informed anyone of this.

"Yes, but how are you aware of this bit of information?" the Grand Kai gave a slight giggle, which made Gowasu sigh. She's always been quite the snoop, and he didn't know where she learned such skills.

" _That is a discussion for another day, dear Gowasu. Now, I actually have someone in mind, the person being the Kai of the north quadrant._ " That caught Gowasu's attention.

"Really? The North Kai? What made you decide that she should be chosen to be my apprentice?" Gowasu doubted any of the lower Kais were worthy of his time, but he had to give it a try.

" _She has a name dear Gowasu. Zamasu, and she's an exceptional Kai, having made her quadrant one of the most peaceful and evolved among the mortal realm._ " now that really caught Gowasu's attention. Grand Kai continued.

"The best part is that she did all this with very little intervention, both direct and indirect. Oh and not to mention her exceptional skills, she's one of the most extremely skilled fighters in the universe! She can easily best all the other Kais and their warriors, and being in her presence honestly makes me a little nervous."

Gowasu was completely blown back by this. A Kai this exceptional? It sounded far too good to be true.

"How do I know you are telling the truth?" he asked questionably.

The Grand Kai gave a mock cry of despair. " _Oh my lord! You wound me, truly, you do! But if you don't believe me, then why don't you take look for yourself? I've actually sending her right now. Good luck!_ " the mental link gets cut off, not allowing Gowasu to speak. He grumbled under his breath, not really liking how the Grand Kai ad just cut him off like that.

Time to get ready, it would seem.

...

Gowasu waited patiently outside of the Kaioshin Palace. After a good amount of time, a figure appeared a few yards away. It was a female Kai, green in skin tone and with a delicate facial structure. She wore the robes typical of the lower Kais, the kanji for 'north' in the front and very likely 'kai' on the back. He stepped forward and spoke.

"You are Zamasu, correct?" Zamasu bowed in respect.

"I am, Lord Kaioshin." Gowasu walked around her, examining the young Kai. She truly was fairly young for a Kai. He was beginning to doubt Grand Kai's words.

"Do you know why you are here, Zamasu?" Gowasu looked at her questionably. Zamasu shook her head lightly.

"I do not my lord." She tilted her head innocently. "May I ask why?"

Gowasu stared at her for a second before answering. "The Grand Kai has recommended you to be a Kaioshin." This time, an expression of surprise briefly appeared on Zamasu's beautiful face, but she hid it quickly. But Gowasu caught it. He began walking towards the palace, but not before glancing back and saying "Follow me. Your test begins now."

* * *

Gowasu never even noticed the demon gazing upon the world, with an amused grin and an evil glint in her eye, as she watched the now female Zamasu take the Kaioshin apprentice exam.

 _'Now that my part is done, Mira shouldn't be having much trouble with his role in the play.'_

She disappeared.

* * *

 _ **Original timeline, Earth, Age 796**_

A huge blast tore through the building Zamasu thought they were hiding, completely catching him off guard and tearing right through her right side. The blast kept going, traveling to depths of space. Zamasu was so shocked that it took her a few seconds to realize s he was missing her right side. With a shout, she had regenerated completely, but s he was still pissed.

"I blew off your arm, and you grew it back like it was nothing. That's going to be annoying."

Zamasu glared angrily at this new...appearance. She wasn't sure if it was Goku or Vegeta, but she didn't care.

"You...what is that form?" s he had never witnessed such a transformation before, not by the saiyans.

"The name's Vegetto, and like you, I too was created by the Potara fusion." Vegetto finished his introduction with a cocky stance and smirk, which he had inherited from Vegeta.

Zamasu was surprised by this. "A fusion between mortals?" such a thing was utter blasphemy.

"Oh? You didn't know we could do that too? Not like it was the first time." Vegetto said with a chuckle. "Then I'll tell you something else you don't know."

A vein started to pop out of Zamasu's forehead. "What?"

Vegetto's smirk stayed intact. "Your fusion is too unstable. Because your immortality is unbalanced by your non-immortal side, you'll defuse in about an hour."

Zamasu looked downright furious, before her body relaxed and she gave a smirk. "Oh well. So be it then. One hour will be enough to end you, mortal."

Vegetto scoffed. "Don't misunderstand. I don't intend for this to continue on any longer." He took out a senzu bean from his sash, and ate it. He buffed up for a second before returning to normal. "Much better. And now, I'd like to show you something great." He crouched down, the wind blowing much harder than it had before. Vegetto's form began to engulf itself in blue ki.

"This...is...Vegetto...BLUE!" Vegetto's aura exploded into glass-like shards, now in his Super Saiyan Blue state. He smirked, his very aura lashing out in a threatening manner, as Zamasu stepped back in worry.

"I will give you no time to regenerate. I will erase you completely, Zamasu." Vegetto raised his arm, and produced a powerful shockwave that sent Zamasu flying. Zamasu was completely caught off by this, and thus she had no time to react as she was sent flying through a couple of buildings. Vegetto was right on her tail, having appeared above her in an instant, and punched Zamasu in the stomach several times, before backhanding her into a hole in the ground. Vegetto raised his arm, generated a ball of ki, and through it into the hole. He distanced himself for the incoming explosion.

BOOM!

There was nothing more now than a huge crater in the earth. Vegetto landed just outside of it, tapping his foot. "Come on, Zamasu! Don't forget I'm the one who benefits from this the longer it lasts." Vegetto was surprised when he felt two hands grip his legs. He looked down to see Zamasu appearing out of the ground, acting like the mole she was. She grinned, jumping up and tugging Vegetto with her to toss him aside. But she blinked when she had no feeling in her hands. She looked at them to see she had no hands. Zamasu stared at Vegetto angrily.

Vegetto only gave a cocky grin in response to Zamasu's frustration. "Come now, you've forgotten your hands." he took a stance, and charged Zamasu with his energy blade. He struck out multiple times, and Zamasu managed to avoid having any more parts of her cut off, but wasn't able to avoid getting cut several times, along with other bruises. Vegetto kicked her away into the air, it was time to end this. He spread out both of his arms to each side, gathering enough ki to end it once and for all.

Up in the air, Zamasu had regenerated both her hands and had healed her body. She was inwardly panicking at how this was turning out. 'I-It wasn't supposed to be like this…'

Vegetto twisted his hands behind him, getting into a familiar stance. "Final…" The ki in between his hands gained a blue hue. "Kame…"

* * *

And that's when everything stopped. Everything around Vegetto and Zamasu literally froze. Even the two fusions themselves.

A figure rose up, watching the scene in front of him with intrigue. It had actually worked. He had frozen time. His creator was right to add that vermin's DNA sample to his own. He had looked at the thing with indifference before, because of its pathetic level of power. But it had some unique abilities that made up for it. What was it called...Guldo?

He made his way towards the goddess in the air, stopping right in front of her. This being was capable of such high levels of power, the powers of a god. Could he attain such power…irrelevant. He had a mission to complete, and complete it he would. He wouldn't be able to hold his breath for much longer.

Pulling out a strange looking fruit from his robe, he pried open the goddess's mouth. He forced her to munch on it, and swallow. His work was done. It was time to go. He was gone in a blur of red. Not a second later, the world resumed.

* * *

Zamasu's eyes widened as she felt something hot bubbling up from inside of her. She clutched her head, reeling from the massive headache that just appeared out of nowhere.

'What is this?! This, this is…' Zamasu threw her head back, screaming with the agony of hundreds of deaths. Vegetto noticed this, and stopped his chant. He looked at the screaming goddess in slight concern.

'What's wrong with her? And why is her power spiking up so dramatically?' a purple glow took over his body for a brief second, causing his concern to vanish. "I need to finish this now."

Zamasu screaming ceased, replaced by maniacal laughter. A purple and black aura was on top of her pink one, and her eyes were glowing red. She fisted her hand, grinning wickedly. "Power. That's what this was. This is…" Zamasu's energy continued to spike "...my true potential!" Her aura expanded around her, and she spread her arms in a condescending manner. "Saiyans...receive…" A big silver ring appeared behind her, with red ki forming inside. Zamasu snarled as she threw her hand out at Vegetto "...divine judgement! Blades of Judgement!" As the name implied, the red ki launched itself at Vegetto, turning into a barrage of small blades.

"Hame…" Vegetto had gathered all the energy needed. He thrust his hands forward at the incoming attack.

"HA!" The blue and yellow attack had been launched, the Final Kamehameha making its way towards Zamasu's Blades of Judgement.

Trunks couldn't sense godly ki, but one thing was for certain: the explosion from this was going to be huge. He turned back to his fellow spectators.

"Lord Shin, Lord Gowasu, Mai! GET DOWN!" Trunks grabbed Mai and ran inside some random building, heading towards its basement. The Kaioshins took cover behind some rubble farther away.

The Final Kamehameha and Blades of Judgement collided. Utter chaos ensued. The energy that radiated from the two powerful blasts was building up at an alarming rate as Vegetto and Zamasu both attempted to get the upper hand on one other, but neither side was gave an inch. The energy accumulating was getting dangerously close to detonated, as the shockwaves it created slowly tore the Earth apart, the damage spreading through the entire cosmos. The shockwaves could even be felt throughout all the other universes, causing a terrible imbalance.

"HYAAH!" Vegetto's and Zamasu's yells were the only things that rose above the chaos around them. Their built up power sent out one more powerful shockwave. And then everything went white. The Earth was no more, and both Vegetto and Zamasu were nowhere in sight.

* * *

 ** _Demon Realm, Unknown Age_**

The demon sorceress watched with fascination as an entire timeline was ripped apart before her eyes, through the hologram that her staff was creating. She trembled, but not in fear.

"This is just what I was looking for...soon, the Demon Realm will-"

"Towa." Towa turned around in surprise, but smiled, seeing it was just her latest creation.

"Ah, Mira. Finished already?" Mira nodded stoically, motioning behind him. Several warriors from different timelines, all in Timebreaker states, not only giving them large increases in power, but also putting them under their control. Well, for the most part anyway. They served both Mira and Towa, but still retained a semblance of their former selves, as to not make them mindless puppets.

'Sometimes, it's better that way.' Towa thought as her eyes drifted towards the Legendary Super Saiyan. She turned back to Mira, who only stared at her with questioning eyes.

"When will we proceed?" Towa smiled as she drummed her fingers against her staff.

"Soon. Very soon."

* * *

 **You guys like it? I can't be given all the credit here, part of it goes to my co-author Trevaacin. Check out his profile, and if anyone reading this is a beta reader, he really needs one. He's gonna be doing a lot of the chapters in this fic, believe me, 'cause I'm not good at anything far off canon or OCs.**

 **Okay, so if some of you are confused about the turn of events that just transpired, let me explain.** **This follows the Dragon Ball Super manga events, but with changes such as:**

 **-Vegeta being the one to use Perfect Super Saiyan Blue and almost single handedly destroying Zamasu. The reason for this is because not only does he not get enough time in the spotlight, but because he was massively ahead of Goku before. So for Goku to easily surpass Vegeta just like that, makes no sense whatsoever. God Zamasu is a being leagues ahead both of them, so Goku, who was miles being Vegeta, to just use that state and surpass Vegeta, again, makes no sense.**

 **-Zamasu's reason for defusing. Let's be honest, who actually thought this was a good idea originally? Mine sounds better.**

 **-fem!Zamasu. Okay, so some of you might be scratching your head because of Goku Black. Look, my version of Zamasu is female, Goku Black has the mind of a female, when they fused, the fusion decided since both counterparts would make up something mostly female, it decided to give us a female version of God Zamasu, instead of a tranny. Understood? No? Oh well, not my concern.**

 **Also, while the Xenoverse portions do consist of things from Xenoverse 2, none of the actual story from either games actually happened. Not in this fic.**

 **Okay, me and Trevaacin will see you all in about a month, because that's how long it's gonna be for each chapter. Bye!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Captured**

White. Everything around him was white. Black too. White, black, everything in between, Vegetto was overwhelmed by the totality of it all. He was surrounded by everything imaginable, and yet nothing. He felt as if there was another presence with him, and yet totally alone at the same time. There was a sensation of moving, but also that of standing totally still. Long story short, each attempt to use his senses left Vegetto with infinitely more questions than answers.

He opened his eyes, then closed them again. There was no difference, just the eerie constance of the void that surrounded him and penetrated his being. _'Is this oblivion?'_ He thought, the voice in his head resonating as loud as if he had spoken it. _'Is this what it's like for me after defusing? Funny, you'd think I would've remembered this from the first time around.'_

An eternity seemed to pass, and Vegetto came to be aware of something. He was getting closer to something. He didn't know how to describe it, he wasn't approaching it from any direction, and yet he was. Closer and closer he seemed to get, until his senses finally faded to blissful nothingness.

…

 _ **Universe 9, Unknown Planet, Unknown Age**_

He was somewhere now, Vegetto could tell. His senses were dull, but the slightly uncomfortable feeling of the rocky terrain his body was lying on, the cool gust of wind that rippled through his torn blue and orange shirts, could only mean one thing. He hadn't defused. He was on a planet. And, as a quick and alarmingly difficult ki scan of his surroundings revealed, so was Zamasu. _'Shit!'_

Vegetto tried to move, but quickly found his recent stunt had left him unusually drained. He cursed, or tried to, anyways, and settled for simply clenching his teeth. Time passed, and Vegetto was vaguely aware that Zamasu, who must have been lying a short distance away, hadn't moved either. It seemed like hours flew by, but that couldn't be possible, could it? Shouldn't he have defused by now? Something was off, but Vegetto pushed that concern to the back of his mind. Focusing on the 'why' wouldn't get him anywhere, what was more important was what to do now. And right now his primary concern was managing to get on his feet before Zamasu did, then figuring out how to deal with this new situation.

More time passed, this time painfully slowly as Vegetto slowly worked on regaining the movement in his limbs. It shouldn't have been taking him this long to recover. At least Zamasu seemed to be dealing with the same difficulty, he hadn't sensed her move either. They weren't alone now, either. Through his blurred vision, Vegetto could see figures darting around them, muttering things amongst themselves barely perceptible over the ringing of his ears, even with Saiyan hearing. 'Run, you fools!' Vegetto wanted to shout at them. _'Do you have any idea what kind of monster is lying so close to you?! Run while you still can!'_ He acted on this urge, but managed only a brief grunt. The figures jumped back, startled by his sudden movement, and Vegetto nearly smirked to himself at this small victory, until they swarmed around him once more, this time twice in number.

The fused warrior didn't have the time to continue his internal musings this time, however. One of the figures bent down a bit too close, and he felt a sharp prick on the side of his neck. If his thoughts had been less disoriented, half of Vegetto would have been alarmed by what this meant. Now, however, Vegetto felt only the slightest hint of surprise as everything faded into black, not for the first time.

…

Several things were different the next time the warrior found himself awake. His setting had changed, that much was clear. The ground beneath him, while still cold and hard, was uniform, perfectly smooth and completely level, while the air wasn't much warmer, but stood still without the hint of a breeze. So he was indoors...

Vegetto tried moving his left arm, then his right, and found he had far more strength than the last time he had awoken. Even so, he felt strained, as if some outside force was siphoning off his strength from within. Odd, he hadn't noticed that last time. The ringing in his ears was gone now, and with little effort he raised his arms and pushed himself into an upright position.

Zamasu had been brought with him as well, it seemed, as Vegetto could feel her ki not far off, and now with his head clearer he could clearly sense the nature of her ki, subdued immensely from what he was used to, but by no means low. And, although slowly, her ki rose with each passing moment in an almost imperceptible manner.

Next the fusion tried opening his eyes, taking in his surroundings with a careful gaze. He was surrounded by dark grey, stone walls, which met at sharp angles on three of the sides around him, and the floor and the ceiling proved no different, completely uniform except for a few small cracks that ran along the wall to his left. The final wall was a series of vertical metal bars, in its corner an outline and small box that indicated it must have been a door. A prison cell. Beyond the wall lay an equally dismal hallway, and across it a similarly barren cell, with one difference. Zamasu sat in it, looking oddly amused.

 _'Really? Whoever placed me here honestly thinks this will hold me?'_ Vegetto smirked, raising a single arm as he prepared to fire a small blast into the wall before him. His energy never appeared. Frustrated, the saiyan drew back his right arm and punched the wall before him, before blinking in astonishment. He winced and clutched his now aching hand, muttering a few choice words at this most recent development.

Across the hallway, Zamasu laughed. "You finally noticed," she remarked, the grin never leaving her face, "the mortals who placed us here injected us with some sort of sedative. Naturally, being a mere imitation of my divine being, it took you longer to regain consciousness afterwards, but the result is the same. Neither of us can use our ki while this substance remains in our bloodstream, and it may be quite some time before it wears off."

Vegetto frowned, taking in this new information. "Tch, now what? This doesn't make any sense! How could something like this even happen?"

Zamasu scoffed, "You mean you didn't feel it? Typical, once again proof of the inferiority of mortals compared to the majesty of a god. Our clash ripped us out of our universe, and we've found ourselves in another. The trip drained us of our power, but we were sedated before we could recover. And now, several days later, here we are."

Vegetto stared, "Several days? The fusions should have worn off within an hour!"

"Then perhaps your source of knowledge was mistaken. The other Kais were always foolhardy, that's why I started by wiping them out. Or perhaps not. It doesn't really matter, anyways. We're here, and that's that. Now all that's left is to resume my Zero Mortals Plan at the earliest convenience, so whenever this serum wears off."

A moment's silence followed, the two enemies having no real reason to speak to one another now that the question had been answered. It remained, until Vegetto broke it by voicing a thought aloud, "If they were smart enough to inject us with a serum in the first place, they'll probably return eventually to re-apply it."

Zamasu raised an eyebrow, "Oh, and why is this new information? Of course they will, but mortals are imperfect beings. Eventually, they'll forget and come a moment too late, and in the moment I regain control over my ki, they shall receive my divine judgement."

It was Vegetto's turn to smirk, and he raised his fist, clenching it, almost in preparation, "We don't need to wait that long. Take them by surprise with a few well aimed punches and we can get out whenever we want."

"Oh, and how do you propose we do this without most of our power?"

"Strength isn't everything, I've got plenty of experience taking down opponents equal or stronger than me, or at least, Kakarot and Vegeta do."

"I suppose it is possible then. But what of this 'we' business? You can't honestly expect the two of us to work together."

Vegetto scowled, breaking eye contact as he responded, "I don't like the idea any more than you do, but we may have to work together to get out of here without our full strength. With how big my senses show this compound is, we have no other choice if we want to escape. Not as allies, but in the spirit of 'the enemy of my enemy is my friend'." The fused warrior kept his eyes downcast, masking the shame he felt at having admitted a weakness, for the first time in his several hours of life.

The hours flew by, one by one, and the two fusions resigned themselves to resting against the walls of their cells, immobile except for the rhythmic motion of their breaths. The lighting remained constant, this detail revealing one additional truth of their situation, which Vegetto took note of. There was no natural light filtering in, so they were either underground, in space, or a combination of the two. The former seemed more likely, and although the detail alone didn't help much, it was a start.

The serum, it seemed, was long lasting. Several times guards came to feed the two, always making sure to avoid opening the cage, and slid food into their cells through a narrow slot, muttering in some foreign tongue as they did so. Zamasu barely ate, she had little need to, and Vegetto did only when he was sure no one was looking.

After an immeasurable period in which this cycle continued, a different party of guards approached the door. There were more than usual this time, and they carried none of the stale bread like substance the saiyan had grown accustomed to. There were five of them in all this time around, as opposed to the usual two. Four of them wore typical uniformly crafted copper like plates covering their chests, and black fabric over their legs and four arms. They wore similar metallic helmets, boots, and gauntlets, which covered their red skin. But this wasn't what was new this time. It was the fifth one amongst them, casually dressed compared to the guards with their state of the art armor and belts of weapons, this one wore a simple coat, blindingly white in the dull environment. In one of its right hands was an odd circular device, perfectly symmetrical except for a single sharp point which extruded from its surface.

Vegetto flinched self consciously. _'Needles…'_ he could remember clearly the fear Kakarot felt for such objects, and was half tempted to cower at the sight of it himself. Only his purpose kept his outward appearance neutral, and behind the newcomers he exchanged a glance with his nemesis. It was time.

The guards paused at the gate to his cell, and one of them produced a set of keys, which was promptly inserted into the lock. Two more stepped quickly inside, ushering him to the center of the cell with their drawn swords, made of an alloy Vegetto didn't recognize. He played along, biding his time. The scientist, he assumed, approached, with the two remaining guards behind them. The door shut behind them. The only signal Vegetto gave was a slight smirk, then it began.

One of the guards reached for his arm, probably to expose his wrist for injection, but Vegetto caught it in his before he could respond. The guard gave a shout of anger, and momentarily forgot his weapon as he swung with his free fist. Vegetto ducked beneath it, and twisted his arm as he did so, disarming the first. The second had moved now, and he too was aiming to incapacitate the warrior with his own weapon. A simple twist placed the first guard in the way of the other, and Vegetto winced internally as the two cried out, one in pain and the other in alarm. He now no longer had the element of surprise, but that didn't matter. He was one of the strongest and most skilled martial artists the universe had to offer without the use of ki, and a saiyan to top it off. As long as he didn't drop his guard, he could easily dispatch the rest of the guards. Vegetto grinned in anticipation as his saiyan blood boiled at this new challenge.

Vegetto picked up the weapon of the fallen guard, and took note of its feel in his arm. It would have to do, until he could rely on ki again. Shutting his eyes momentarily, he went through a couple of memories from Kakarot's and Vegeta's younger days, his body subconsciously falling into a proper stance that would allow full use for a handheld blade. He opened with a quick jab to the closest guard, his opponent meeting it with his own sword. He extended his reach a bit farther until the end of his sword met with the guard of the opposing blade, twisted it, and disarmed the guard. He closed in on his opponent and rendered him unconscious with the butt of the handle. His spine tingled, and he quickly spun around to meet the other guard in a stalemate. With his free hand, he closed in and landed a solid punch to the guard's midsection, causing his opponent to spit and crumble onto the floor. Two down, two to go.

The other guards had not interfered up until this point, and now Vegetto realized why. They were trying to encircle him, one now stood on either side of him, weapons ready. He would've scoffed if he were able to use his ki. But even so, he was rather confident in his ability to handle these two. And so, he stabbed the sword into the floor, hard. He raised his arms to either side, gesturing with his hands in a 'come hither' motion. The guards took the bait, and as they swung their swords at Vegetto, the saiyan ducked, causing both of the guards to clash instead. They were surprised, and using that to his advantage, Vegetto kicked out the right guard's legs, causing him to stumble and fall to the floor with his comrade. Taking his sword out of the ground, he slammed the flat of the blade onto the side of their heads, rendering the guards unconscious.

The civilian they had brought, who had been staring with wide eyes at the brawl, turned tail and ran, dropping his instruments as he did so. Vegetto made no move to stop him, and instead observed which direction he ran, and which corner he rounded. Now he knew which way the exit was. Vegetto crouched, and in a moment retrieved the set of keys that one of the now unconscious guards had dropped, along with a second sword. Then, carefully stepping around a certain pointy object which will remain unnamed, approached the unlocked doorway.

He stepped into the hallway, ducking beneath the low archway of the cell door, the aliens had been perhaps a half a foot shorter than himself, and approached Zamasu's cell. A quick glance to each side told him there was no one else in the corridor. And so Vegetto began the tedious task of determining which of the keys belonged to the cell. On the fourth or fifth try, he heard the telltale click, and the door swung open.

Zamasu stretched in an exaggerated fashion as she exited the small compartment, mock appraising her temporary ally as she stepped out. "Well, that was satisfyingly brutal." She smirked, and Vegetto returned it with a frown, "Although I must point out, you left them alive. Why not finish the job and end their unjust lives?"

Vegetto's frown deepened, "There's no pride in finishing off a defeated opponent. They're already out of the way."

Zamasu only shrugged in indifference, "Oh well, you've only prolonged their lives for the short time it'll take me to regain my divine power." She gestured to the second blade Vegetto had retrieved, "I suppose that second sword is for me, then? You really do plan on going through with this joint escape plan, then?"

Vegetto nodded, choosing to ignore the jab hidden in her words, "I've seen how proficient you are with a ki blade, you should be capable of wielding this."

Zamasu took the blade, lifting it into the air as she tested its weight, "Yes, this is perfect. An elegant weapon to bring divine judgement upon the mortals that dare stand in my path, far more sophisticated than the common blasters most planets rely on."

Vegetto rolled his eyes, and turned away from her in the direction the scientist had ran off to. He set off in that direction, not sparing a glance to see if Zamasu would follow him. She did, soon enough, and the two quickly reached the end of the hallway, turning left into foreign territory.

* * *

 _ **Conton City, Unknown Age**_

Trunks walked past his statue as he made his way through the erratic city. Yes, he had a statue, golden to be specific. No, he did not ask for it. He really didn't, and it was embarrassing that Lady Chronoa erected one without him knowing. And it was downright irritating that his subordinates had helped make it.

The statue was an exact copy of him, except in the most cheesiest pose anyone could ever muster. His statue was standing with its back straight, legs apart and holding up its hand with a thumbs up, the other arm on the hip. He was giving the most cheesiest 'cool guy' smirk ever. It was ridiculous, and Mai had laughed at him for days. The worse part? His superior and subordinates honestly thought it looked great, no joke. Trunks wasn't his father, but having people see that everyday took a great blow to his pride.

What was the reason for even erecting a statue of him, one might ask? Back when he was first recruited as the Kaioshin of Time's guardian, two demons and a mindless puppet had tried to kill Lady Chronoa. Trunks, despite not really knowing her, fought them off. In the end, he had managed to force them to retreat, and had freed the warrior from mind control. That warrior was a saiyan, by the name of Bardock. The father of Goku.

The Kaioshin of Time was amazed at how he had defended her from two demons, and even helped gain a new ally in the process. Seeing that the realm of time was in need of protection, he had stayed with Lady Chronoa, and so did Bardock, but that was mostly because he had nowhere else to go. The amount of abnormalities created in the timestream was large because of the two demons, and as a result, everyone had come to the decision that the Time Nest was in need of a time police. The Time Patrol, to be more specific. Trunks had founded the organization, with Bardock being the second in command. Together, they had sought out warriors from different points in time and recruited them into the Patrol. It became so big that Lady Chronoa and Elder Kai (who had been brought in to help manage the flow of time) had created a place where the Patrol could live out their lives normally for all eternity or until death. Toki Toki City, which had eventually been renamed Conton City.

But moving on from the realm of time's history, he had made it out to the city for one reason, and one reason only: Mai. He smiled warmly at the thought of her, most of the stressful and depressing thoughts he had been having recently receding to the back of his mind. He could still remember how he confessed to her, awkward as it was, she still reciprocated his feelings. It was only a few short years after that he had asked her to marry him, and to his relief, she said yes. It felt right, being with her. They had fought side by side to defend the Earth, and even time itself.

 _'Where would I be without her…'_ Trunks thought. He was waiting outside the Time Machine Station. It was filled to the brim with Time Machines, all of which almost exactly resembled the one created by his mother. The only difference is that these were much safer to use and had no effect on the timestream.

The reason why he was waiting here was because he was waiting for Mai to return from her mission. She went on patrols too, and while she lacked the physical strength to take on heavy missions, she had good espionage skills that made her a great spy. Combine that with a basic understanding of ki, and she was the perfect spy.

"Landing Time Machine #096." said the computer. The same exact landing pad that was supposed to occupy Mai's time machine. Trunks' smile grew when a bright flash in the sky appeared, and when it disappeared, a time machine was the only thing in view. It slowly descended, gracefully landing on the pad. Trunks floated over it as the glass top opened, revealing Mai, who was wearing a similar outfit to his own. Before she could jump out, he decided to be a jerk, grab her shoulders and fly into the air, scaring the hell out of her.

"AAHH! Who is this?! Let me go!" Mai fired a weak ki blast in a random direction. Trunks felt bad, so he decided to calm her down.

"Hey, calm down Mai, it's me, Trunks." Mai stopped freaking out and looked up. He gave her a boyish smile, but she didn't buy it this time. She freed herself from his grasp, floated up to meet his eyes, and gave him a good whack to the head. He instinctively wrapped his arms around her waist

"Ow!" he rubbed the side of his face. Mai gave a stern glare.

"That was for surprising me! I just came back from a patrol, are you crazy?" Trunks opened his mouth to apologize, but was met with Mai's sweet lips. He returned the kiss, the two falling into a quick embrace. It ended not a moment later. Mai pulled away, smiling a little.

"I missed you." he returned it with one of his own, "So did I."

"Oh? You sure you didn't replace me with one of your fans?" she said teasingly as they flew towards Conton City's plaza.

Trunks rolled his eyes, "Don't even joke about that." He snapped his fingers, remembering something, "So, you want to go home to dress for dinner?"

Mai's eyes widened, "Dinner?"

"Yeah, I promised you dinner when you came back, remember?" Mai smiled.

"Yeah, I remember. But I don't think it's necessary to dress up, dear." Trunks was about to respond, when a voice in his ear made him stop in his tracks. Mai looked at him confused as Trunks heard the voice in his ear piece.

 _::Trunks! You have to come quick!::_

Trunks blinked in confusion.

"Ace?" he had thought Ace had gone off to train his apprentice.

 _::Yes! Look, all those under Lady Chronoa's direct command have been called back to the Time Nest immediately!::_

Trunks blinked in confusion, "What? Why? What's going on over there?"

 _::It's a mess! I-I can't explain it in detail, but all I can say is that the scrolls have been tampered with!::_

Trunks' eyes widened in surprise, "W-What?!" Mai looked on in concern.

 _::Just get over here! Bring Mai too. Don't worry about Bardock, I've already called him over.::_

The connection was cut, so Trunks couldn't ask anymore questions. He sighed.

"Is everything okay, Trunks?" Mai touched his shoulder, showing some concern for her lover. Trunks chuckled, "Looks like we'll have to cancel dinner reservations. I'll explain on the way, just follow me to the Time Nest."

* * *

 ** _Universe 9, Unknown Planet, Unknown Age_**

At first, everything went well. Too well. And after a while, unnervingly well. Sure, it seemed like the perfect escape at first glance. With their ability to sense ki, the two fused fighters were able to perfectly avoid any guard that potentially got in their way, ducking behind corners and into convenient open cells before one could even come into sight. But after a while, Vegetto was beginning to feel on edge. Surely by now they would have encountered at least one situation where they were left with no other option but to fight. And with the casual air Zamasu was treating the whole escape with, this moment should have come sooner rather than later. But it hadn't, and he was beginning to wonder why.

It had started out easy enough. They were clearly in one of the isolated wings of the prison, and they encountered no guards in the hallway they turned into, nor in the next alley. The hallways were all identical, a labyrinth of passageways distinguishable only by the markings at each intersection, written in a language neither Vegetto nor Zamasu could decipher.

He had made some remark about this last detail, and the former kai had retorted something about not knowing dialects in universes she was never responsible for. They'd continued the banter, quietly of course, for some time, until they encountered the first guard, patrolling a corridor marked with a symbol that resembled an upside down 'q'.

Fortunately, no word seemed to have spread about their recent escape, and the guard wasn't, well, on guard. Sneaking past him had been elementary. He never bothered to glance into the empty cells on either side as he lazily walked back and forth through the passage, and neither warrior was inexperienced enough to make a sound as they darted back and forth. They reached the end of the hallway, and it was there that the two encountered the first real sign of progress. A stairway.

Crouching as they climbed, the escapees emerged on the next floor, only to find it identical to the one below them. Vegetto cursed, progress was infuriatingly slow. This floor, like the hallways, seemed to be marked with some symbol to denote its location, although once again it was illegible to the two.

Glancing at the empty cells around them, this was the first sign that something was off. All of the cells were empty. Every. Single. One of them, was completely devoid of even signs that someone had once occupied them. It was like they were the only prisoners in the complex. Vegetto was quick to voice this concern, but Zamasu dismissed it just as fast. "Well, if this is how they treat everyone who lands on their rock, I suppose after awhile they stopped getting visitors."

The fused saiyan ignored her remark, turning away and back in the direction they were headed in. As an afternote, he called back, "Just keep your guard up, something odd is going on here."

"Hmph, as if I would be foolish enough to let it down in the first place. Do you really question my divine intuition?"

She got no response, although Vegetto doubted she had expected one. The labyrinth on this floor was almost identical to the one below them. The corridors seemed to form a sort of grid as they explored them, the hallways equally spaced and meeting at perfect right angles at each intersection. The only sign they weren't simply going in circles was the symbols etched into the stone periodically, although still they served only as minor landmarks. Once again, they encountered few guards on this floor as well.

Now growing increasingly frustrated, Vegetto finally did find himself back at the stairway they had so recently ascended. He stopped, glancing around as if this was the first time he had encountered this portion of the complex. He wasn't facing Zamasu, but he could see the cruel grin that lit up her features clear as day.

"Oh, have you gotten lost already?" she chided him, "Would you like me to take the lead from here, or are you complacent running in circles like a headless chicken?"

The saiyan held up a hand, gesturing for his temporary accomplice to pause. "Wait, we need to think about this differently. Clearly this isn't the ground floor, and yet the stairs only led up one flight. In most structures, regardless of what planet they're built on, the stairways are generally one continuous flight from top to bottom, its efficient. So why would the stairs up from here be somewhere else on the floor? We've been looking in all the wrong places."

Zamasu perked an eyebrow, "Are you suggesting there's some hidden stairwell nearby?"

Vegetto nodded, flashing a grin at her as he paced across the room, examining the walls. "Exactly!" He ran his gloved hand along the wall next to him, pausing every once in awhile. Finally he stopped, examining a section of the wall near one of the corners as if he'd found what he was looking for. The fighter crouched, then slowly stood as he traced a hand up one section of the wall. Hidden in it was a small, perfectly straight crack that ran from the ceiling to the floor. Vegetto observed it for a second, seemingly lost in thought, then raised his newly obtained sword and thrust it into the crack, so that the flat end of the blade was parallel with the crevice.

He gripped the hilt of the sword tightly and began pulling it, forcing the blade to slowly widen the gap in the stone. After a moment, Vegetto paused and looked at the former kai, who had been watching him with amusement. "A little help here? I doubt we'll be able to open this door the way it's intended to, but we can pry it open with our blades with enough effort, it doesn't seem particularly thick."

Zamasu gave an exaggerated sigh and walked over, lifting her pillaged weapon before she too thrust it into the gap, which had widened ever so slightly as the door began to give way. Clearly whoever had constructed it had never thought to install a lock, instead likely believing camouflaging it would make such an addition unnecessary.

The door opened slowly, grinding against the stone floor until the two had created a narrow gap between it and the wall, exposing the hidden passageway behind it. Not waiting a second longer, Vegetto promptly squeezed his way into the newfound opening, stumbling into a dimly lit room. Zamasu followed close behind, and the two found themselves peering around the new space.

Unlike the fairly regular light sources of the dungeon like prison they had left behind, this room had next no none. An electric light hung in the air every hundred or so meters, with plenty of space covered in almost absolute darkness. The passage was narrow, too narrow for Vegetto and Zamasu to walk even side by side, and unlike the level stone behind them, this was slanted upwards, a steep ramp covered in metal plating. The air was stale, and cold on top of that, and as they began their trek up the slope Vegetto realised the temperature varied with the amount of light at any given point. The light sources doubled as heaters, it seemed.

The passageway seemed to stretch for an unusual amount of time, and in this Vegetto came to his second realization. He stopped, and turned to face Zamasu. She stopped as well, but not by choice. In a hallway only wide enough for one person, it's not like she could have passed him.

They stood in silence for a few seconds, before Zamasu cleared her throat. "So, are you going to say why you decided to stop halfway through this dreadful tunnel? Because-" Vegetto clenched a hand over her mouth before she could get any further, glaring at her (although she didn't see that part in the dim lighting).

The saiyan took a half step towards her, glanced around for a moment, and began in a whisper, "Something is very, very wrong about all of this. These people, whoever they are, must be capable of far more than what we've seen so far. They're clearly well aware of the ability to use ki, with their serum they've injected into us, so why haven't we encountered anyone who can use it themselves? If they can suppress it with technology, why have none of their own soldiers done so? There's no doubt they've at least reached the point where installing basic security cameras would be child's play. They should be tracking our every move, and we've encountered no resistance. So why?"

In the darkness, the former kai's expression was unreadable, not that Vegetto believed it would change at all from her usual cocky grin. She responded, in a tone dripping with sarcasm, "So you've finally noticed we're being led into a trap? It's no matter really, ki or no ki, they can't possibly strike down the immortal deity that I am, it's only a matter of time before they succumb to my just wrath."

Vegetto groaned, "Just because you're immortal doesn't mean you can't be captured!"

Squinting in the shadows, the fused warrior could just barely make out the form of Zamasu shrugging. "And? I've got all the time in the universe. They're flawed creatures, it's only a matter of time before I get out of here."

Vegetto sighed, and turned back to face the darkness before him, ready to head to the next dim light. "Don't get cocky. I intend on escaping the first time, not the tenth or twelth. The trap is going to spring soon. I can feel it."

They walked slowly up the cramped hall for some time, although the end never came in sight. Just when they passed under yet another dim electric light, humming faintly, a faint clicking sound reverberated from somewhere beneath them. Vegetto was instantly on edge, raising his weapon as he peered into the darkness ahead of him, regretting that while he was perfectly visible from where he stood, whatever enemies lurked in the darkness remained invisible. Zamasu turned to face the way back down as she lifted her own blade, her back almost touching that of her nemesis as the two adopted a defensive position. For a moment, everything was eerily quiet. Try as they might, they couldn't detect a single ki signature in either direction. Then, one by one the lights began to flicker and go out, until they were left in total darkness. Vegetto cursed, crouching to make himself less vulnerable. The room began to rumble, more and more violently until suddenly, everything stopped. Then, a blinding light flashed from beneath them, and the floor gave way.

* * *

 **This chapter goes mostly to Trevaacin. I only did the Xenoverse portion up there.**

 **As this is a new story of ours, please let us know what you think in the reviews. What do you guys hope to see? What are you liking so far? But anyway, just remember to review. We'll see you guys next chapter.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Escape**

 ** _Time Nest, Unknown Age_**

Trunks and Mai finally arrived at the Time Nest. They descended, and began to walk towards the Time Vault. Mai couldn't help but ask the million dollar question.

"So why are we here again?" Trunks frowned, the worry he had been carrying all this time beginning to return.

"I'm not really sure. Ace sounded really panicked when he talked. Something having to do with the scrolls, that's for sure. And whatever it is, must be serious."

Mai looked up at him. "How serious?"

"Enough to call in me, Ace and Bardock." Mai's eyes went as wide as saucers.

"Really?!" Trunks nodded curtly. Mai now looked concerned. "Oh my. A situation that serious...there hasn't been anything like that since the attack on the Time Nest by those two…" she trailed off, thinking back to when they had first encountered Towa & Mira.

Trunks nodded, knowing what she was thinking. Towa & Mira hadn't been easy opponents. Towa, while not that strong physically, was a dangerous and cunning sorceress. But what was even worse was her guardian, Mira. Mira had been an absolute monster. He wasn't anywhere near as strong as Goku Black or Fused Zamasu, but he was in a way, just another version of Cell. Towa (who's also a scientist) had created him from the DNA of many prominent warriors from various timelines, most notably fighters from Universe 7. Even as an ascended saiyan, he proved to be nothing against him. It wasn't until he freed Bardock from his mind control that he finally beat Mira, with his help.

Both he and Bardock had become much stronger since then, and they had trained a whole patrol together. Yet, another situation had called on them to handle together. That wasn't good news.

But, as leader of the patrol, Trunks put on a smile. "Well, we're much stronger than we were before, and larger too. Even if we were to face another threat as big as the last, I'm sure we should be able to take care of it easily." he said it with the right amount of inspiration to try and cheer Mai up.

It seemed to do the trick, because his wife visibly relaxed. "You're right. With as big we are now, nothing can stand in our way."

He nodded, and the two walked up the steps of the grand palace before them. Once they made it up, they entered the Time Vault. Trunks looked over the railings, and looked down. The sight before him, was not one he expected to see.

Several small piles of scrolls lay on the floor of the floor below him, all covered in a dark, tainted aura. Scouring through them all was Bardock, Ace, Chronoa, Elder Kai and their newest recruit, Lottus.

"Dammit! This one doesn't even make any sense! Why is Broly fighting Cold and Bojack?! How did they even meet?!" Bardock threw the scroll across the room, it still being tainted in a corrupted aura. He crossed his arms, looking disgruntled.

Chronoa glared at Bardock. "Bardock! You aren't supposed to handle the scrolls with such misuse!"

Elder Kai rubbed his chin. "He's right you know. These are some pretty specific changes. This one, for example, has Vegeta become the first Super Saiyan." Chronoa snatched it away from him, looking at the events in horror.

"Oh not another big change!"

"Um, guys." Everyone's eyes turned to look at Ace. He was scratching his head in a confused manner.

"Um, is Raditz supposed to replace Vegeta? And become the first Super Saiyan?" Everyone fell over, including Bardock.

"What?! How did he become a Super Saiyan?! I'm not even going to acknowledge that!" Lottus had an incredulous look on his face.

"HEY!" Everyone turned to see Trunks, now having arrived. He looked extremely confused. "What the hell is going on?!"

Chronoa sighed as she dropped the scroll she had in her hands, and plopped down back on her chair. Toki-Toki landed on her shoulder, rubbing its head against her owner.

"Trunks, Mai, you're both here. And to answer your question, we're not very sure ourselves." Chronoa grabbed a random scroll, and threw it Trunks' way. He caught it, and looked into the Scroll of Eternity. His eyes widened at this timeline's events.

"This...this is back when I went back in time to stop the androids! But...this isn't supposed to happen!" Looking into the scroll, the timeline depicted Android 16 battling Cell in his first form, as happened originally. But unlike last time, 16 actually did manage to defeat Cell, which could've led to unparalleled consequences.

"Okay, a change in history. Obviously, this is bad, but not that bad. If all the other changes are like this, then we can fix it, right?" Repeating that sentence in his head, Trunks realized that might've been easier said than done. There was just so many of these scrolls, all of which contained important events in history.

Chronoa shook her head, looking tired. "I'm afraid it isn't that simple Trunks. Even the smallest changes can have lasting impacts on history. And some of the changes in the rest of these scrolls-" she gestured the piles surrounding them, "-are much more serious. Take a look in the future events of that timeline."

Trunks frowned heavily, but did as he was told. Looking in the scroll's events, he saw that both 16 and Goku survived because of Cell's early demise. Looking into it several years later, he saw Gohan, Goku and his father fighting off Majin Buu. They launch an attack, but Buu is quicker and absorbs them all. Several years after, Beerus annihilates Buu and the Earth, taking several solar systems with the explosion.

Trunks looked back up, now very worried. These impacts on the timestream were huge, and whoever did it, did it with the intention to wreck havoc, as it was not done in a contained fashion.

"Well then, let's get started. We have a lot of timelines to fix."

* * *

 ** _Universe 9, Unknown Planet, Unknown Age_**

Finding himself free falling for the second time since he'd arrived on the odd planet, Vegetto decided that he did not like falling. Perhaps it was the weakness he felt, controlled only by the whims of gravity or whatever else acted on him in this increasingly strange place, rather than being able to control his flight like he had been used to in the rest of his, although rather short (like several days tops, but that's not important right now) life. Or maybe it was because the last time this had happened, the end result was him sitting in a prison cell, drained of his ki. That probably had something to do with it. Either way, Vegetto really wish he could muster the strength to at least levitate.

Falling through the darkness, Vegetto would have continued his train of thought internally debating/complaining about falling sensations, were it not for the sudden shift of direction he felt. Of course, it wasn't darkness he was in at all, but a blinding light that surrounded him at all sides, but the effect was the same. Vegetto had learned long ago in both his fusee's lives what to do when encountering such a light, and for the moment his eyes were sealed shut, so from Vegetto's point of view, he was in darkness. Technicalities, really. He was alone in the strange plummet. Well, not really, he could hear Zamasu uttering a string of profanities not five feet away from him, but he paid her no mind, there were more important things to focus on. He'd deal with the rogue Kaioshin in due time.

There it was again, a shift in his momentum as he suddenly felt jerked to the side, and began falling that way. Still shielding himself from the array of lights that must have covered whatever he was falling through, Vegetto allowed a small smirk to cross his features. This wasn't a free fall at all (although his previous internal monologue had made that clear) but a chute of sorts, a passageway formed entirely by gravity manipulation. Had this been at another time, and had the Kakarot part of him not glazed over the moment something scientific was mentioned, this would have caught his interest. Bulma and Doctor Briefs had come leaps and bounds beyond the rest of their planet combined, and their machines just breached the surface of gravity manipulation, and with centuries of use with it the Frieza Force had never even dreamed of using the technology in such a way. True, the warriors of the Frieza Force had cared only for their next meal or mission, and they lost scientists almost faster than they could replace them. Not to mention the cancerous ideology that you were cursed with a certain level of power for the rest of your life. Honestly, he had no idea where that had stemmed from. Perhaps Frieza had somehow manipulated his crew into thinking in such a way so that he'd avoid dealing with any sudden uprisings.

But putting those last thoughts aside, Vegetto's pride would not allow him to express such open admiration for an adversary's tech, so as quickly as his expression changed, it shifted again to one of annoyance, and he muttered, "These tricks are starting to get annoying, this better end soon before I blast this place into smithereens." the Vegeta in him was quite visible at the moment, having inherited some of the prince's lack of patience and irritation.

A few moments later, it did. The lights around him dimmed, so when Vegetto opened his eyes again he found he was falling, as expected, in a roughly circular metallic tube, towards a slowly widening crack, behind which light, dimmer than what had been in the tunnel, but brighter than in the dim prison, shone.

His body fell through the opening, and into what felt like the open air, quickly, with Zamasu not far behind, and the doors shut quickly behind them. They continued, now upwards for whatever reason, before their bodies seemed to realize what direction down was actually in, and the two landed, face first, on a sandy ground, their "acquired" weapons not too far off.

Vegetto groaned as he got to his feet, dusting himself off, Zamasu growling several feet away from him as she finally stood. The two warriors looked around, and took in their surroundings. They were in a dirt ring, of sorts, the yellow soil stretching uniformly in all directions until it was met with sharp, grey stone walls that rose up several meters, topped with what appeared to be the bones of several species at regular intervals. Or, they appeared to be bones, as far as he knew they could have been really weird helmets. Beyond those walls a sizeable crowd of the red aliens was gathered, shouting, while above thema single booth housed another, but adorned in a more colorful apparel, a mixture of purple cloth covering a vibrant silver beneath it. Vegetto couldn't help but raise an eyebrow, as this felt more reminiscent of something he would find on one of Frieza's outposts, or Planet Vegeta's own crude fighting ring.

Zamasu seemed to agree with this sentiment, if her next words were anything to go by, as she raised her voice loud enough that their captors could hear her, remarking, "You know, this is all a bit cliche for my tastes, really. You went through an elaborate procedure to subdue us and give us a false sense of security in our escape, only for it to lead us to your arena, which looks exactly like every other barbaric fighting arena I've ever seen? It seems no matter how high mortals build themselves up, they cannot truly break with their primitive past. Then again, I suppose it is the nature of mere mortals to mimic the divine and those around them, you couldn't truly be expected to think of anything new. But, if this is your idea of a finale, you'll pay the price for boring me." She raised her arm as if to smite them, and when, as expected, no ki came, merely shrugged. "Your concoctions cannot drain me of my immortality, whether I have my strength is irrelevant, you shall succumb to my divine wrath soon enough."

The leader, or from his appearance and position appeared to be the leader, laughed, his voice echoing through an unseen sound system that circled the arena. Others joined in, until the arena was filled with the sound of laughter (of course, it had seemed like it earlier, but this time it actually was). Vegetto remained expressionless through the display, and while Zamasu looked indignant besides him, she held herself back. At least she didn't take the bait every time. The laughter finally died down, and the head figure seemed to deflate slightly, not having gotten the response he had wanted from his mockery. He spoke again, his voice filled with a sense of almost fake confidence which reminded Vegetto of the cartoon villains Trunks had watched in the mornings, back in another life that was no longer his own. It was that cliche. How annoying.

At any rate, the ego centric, probably a bastard raised his voice, which wasn't hard with the speaker system he had obviously installed across the arena, probably to make himself feel more important, if the fusion had to guess. "You fools! If we had wanted to kill you, we would have done it already! It's not often our planet gets visitors, especially from such intriguing specimens such as yourselves. We've been watching you this entire time, from the moment you broke out of your cells. An excellent show, by the way, our viewership boomed to higher levels than it had been in decades!"

The saiyan was stunned, taking in this new information, and found himself slightly peeved, despite himself. "You think this is some kind of game?!" Some who had witnessed the spectacle would later claim that the warrior had been absolutely furious at discovering he had been merely toyed with, but Vegetto denies this. He would never lose control in front of someone so clearly beneath him, in both strength and discipline, he was too well trained for that.

This response was clearly what the leader of sorts had been hoping for, and he perked up slightly, speaking in a more confident, condescending tone than before, "Well, I'd call it something more akin to common entertainment. With our economy in its current state, we needed something to placate the masses or they'd riot, so we created this, the perfect entertainment! I won't bore you with the details, but with aliens as exotic as yourselves, we've been making mint off the renewed interest in our program. It wasn't hard either, repurposing the old prison or rerouting the transit system to send you to this arena, and now you're here, ready for the prime time entertainment of our grand empire!"

Vegetto made no reply this time around. The whole situation was ridiculous. Setting up such an elaborate system, just for amusement? They had no idea what they were doing, they were all fools. It was an odd contrast, looking around him. Despite the knowledge this race had clearly gathered, they had no wisdom. Their spectacle was destined to be their downfall, if not now then not too far off.

Zamasu was the one to respond this time, although she acted in a way that took her captors by surprise. She clapped, slowly, mocking them as she spoke up, "An excellent speech, truly. A true testimony to the nature of mortals. I do have to thank you, though. You've given me the most excellent idea of how I'm going to kill you. Your viewers are only interested in something new, are they not? I promise you this will be a quite a spectacle."

The self important figure was stunned, Vegetto could almost see his vein twitching from where he stood in the arena, the alien exclaimed, "You dare make threats to me within my arena? Do you forget what position you're in? Your fates are in my hand, I orchestrated all of this! You are puppets! I can't have a reputation of allowing such slights, this charade has gone long enough! Guards, let the games begin! I want this day to end with the sight or their bodies broken for all to see, or so help me…" he trailed off, not finishing his statement, but everyone got the gist of what he was saying.

Beside him figures scrambled to wherever their posts happened to be, while below Vegetto's slight scowl deepened, his annoyance increasing. _'The games, really? Of all things, they chose the least imaginative name possible? This challenge is turning out to be nothing more than a disappointment…'_

They weren't kept waiting long, this time, and a slight shift in the ground alerted the two that whoever their opponents were going to be had arrived. There were no doors on the sides, and for a moment Vegetto entertained the idea that they may simply drop into the arena. Just then, however, three holes split open in the ground, not unlike the one the two fusions had emerged from themselves, and three of the aliens popped out of them. The newcomers rotated in the air, clearly having done this before, and landed on their feet, kicking up the dirt.

Their opponents raised their weapons menacingly, but made no move to attack. _'Of course'_ Vegetto thought, _'This is a game to them, they won't dare attack until we're completely ready, that'd spoil some of the fun. No need to waste energy rushing to prepare.'_ And, for the most part, that's exactly what he did. Vegetto strode leisurely to his weapon three paces away, and lifted it gradually while adopting a stance optimal for defensive fighting, internally smirking at the impatient expressions he could just glimpse behind the visors of his opponents. Close by, Zamasu did the same, although even slower still. One of the aliens made a gesture towards the both of them, Vegetto assumed meant some sort of insult in this region of space.

For a time, neither party made a move, clearly they were expected to act first. But time wasn't a concern to either of the escapees, they didn't care what the audience thought, and drawing it out only increased the chance their abilities would return. 'For once,' Vegetto marveled, 'time is on my side'. Finally, one of their enemies gave into his impatience, lifted his sword, and charged.

 _'Idiot…'_ Vegetto thought, this was even easier than before. The fool rushed blindly forward, as if he believed his momentum alone would overwhelm the trained fighter. Rather than face him, the saiyan merely sidestepped the attacker, as one would do to a mad bull, and brought his blade up to cripple his opponent from behind, whose momentum now served only to leave him wide open.

Before he could strike, Vegetto noticed a second foe out of the corner of his eye, and was forced to readjust and deal with the more pressing threat, parrying a blow meant for his neck. This one wasn't playing games. Behind him, the idiot of the three finally caught himself, and threw himself upon Zamasu with a flurry of blows, but it was obvious, even in the first few moments, he was outmatched. The third joined in to the aid of the novice though, and with a frown Zamasu began to take the two seriously.

Back with Vegetto, the saiyan averted his attention back to his own fight. It seemed like the first to attack, this one too favored constant attack over a more balanced fighting style, but his experience made him that much harder to counter. Each blow was precise, and for the first time in his life Vegetto struggled to keep up with the onslaught, trapped parrying twice as often as he could launch his own attacks. He was thrilled by the challenge.

Zamasu, however, was not amused. Perhaps it was the constant moving, ever shifting herself to properly deal with both opponents at once, that was grinding on her nerves. Idiot #1, as she had decided to refer to the initial attacker as, was proving to be a nuisance if only for his unpredictability. Another wide slash was easily countered, but before Zamasu could press her advantage the other struck, and she took yet another step back, using the tip of her blade to avert the thrust to one side. Idiot #1 apparently decided that maybe attacking from the other side would yield better results, and moved to do so. Zamasu grinned, and in the short moment she had but one opponent, began an offensive of her own. As expected, the smarter alien was able to repel her first strikes, in part due to his clear experience and in part because of his short stature, but this was going according to plan.

On the third strike, this one a jab at a kink near her opponent's right elbow (of the upper arm, but they didn't seem to use their lower ones for anything but balance), the shorter alien took a step back, and Zamasu resisted the urge to smirk and reveal he had made a mistake. After all, technically this alien hadn't. But it was all the same. His comrade (read: dead weight) jumped in with another strong and equally inefficient blow, right in the way of his ally. The latter cursed at the former's incompetence, and in that opening Zamasu's blade pierced through his armor and cut deeply into into the alien's flesh. He cursed as he took several steps back, clutching the open wound with his other hand, the sword now being held by both his lower arms, creating a very open and unbalanced stance. Idiot #2, the incompetent one that had charged just a moment before, had stopped his incoming charge, now staring at his comrade in shock. He turned his face towards the goddess, who was smirking, twirling the blade in one hand.

"You left yourself rather open there, creature. You shouldn't let yourself get so easily distracted. Although to be fair, your comrade seems to be quite the idiot." Zamasu chastised mockingly, enjoying seeing these mortals get so easily enraged. Honestly, they were so quick to anger.

A short distance off, Vegetto was having no such luck. Although he had once been skilled in all sorts of weaponry, his lack of recent practice was becoming rather apparent. Another parry seemed to come a moment too slow, and he conceded yet another step. So far Vegetto hadn't actually been hit with any blows, but the same couldn't be said of his pride. His opponent made an efficient use of constant jabs, always changing targets but always aimed for crucial weak points, and it was all he could do to knock each aside before it hit its mark. But it seemed there was at least upside to work with. His adversary was skilled and deadly efficient, but his ingenuity didn't seem to match his skill, and was content merely wearing the saiyan down until his guard inevitably slipped. Vegetto just had to find a way to break the cycle before then.

Growling, the proud saiyan continued to give ground, and as he did to he took note of his surroundings. Obviously, the terrain itself was no help, the flat yellow sand a constant for quite some distance. But the proximity to the other fight could prove to be useful, if he could exploit it.

Even at the disadvantage, it wasn't too hard to lead the enemy swordsman. Against his pride, blood, and the nature of his components, Vegetto gave ground more rapidly, but this time with a purpose. Each jab that came a bit too close to comfort, each slash parried a moment too late to counter, he backed up, but no longer simply straight back. Now he was gradually moving to the right, enough that they had made a half circle around one another not thirty seconds later. The four armed fighter he was up against noticed, and jeered, thinking the fusion had grown discouraged.

Finally, he was in position. Vegetto changed strategies last minute, and when the next jab came he avoided it, slightly. Were he standing where he had been a few moments earlier, this would have accomplished nothing. But here, the strongest of the aliens realized only to late that he had been drawn to the position of his comrades, and they now limited his mobility with their proximity, so focused had he been on defeating a single opponent. It tried to continue with a straight thrust at the neck of the saiyan, but now the simple parry brought his sword near his younger ally, who now stood almost between them, oblivious as usual as he fought the rogue Kaioshin.

Nearby, Zamasu took note of this new development with glee. Despite the openness of their surroundings, their duel had been brought into close quarters, and their enemies were now bunched together. Like cattle rounded up to be slaughtered. Only now did she decide to take advantage of her gift the Super Dragon Balls had given her. "Watch," she announced as she raised her blade before her two frustrated opponents, "and learn why you should know your enemy as you know yourself."

A moment later two blades came down to meet her, only this time she let them. Two swords cut through her body, for Zamasu had done nothing to stop them, and the red skinned aliens laughed at what they believed to be their victory. Only then did they notice the cruel smirk that had grown on Zamasu's face, only then did they realize that her life had not even begun to leave her eyes, even with the mortal blows. But it was already too late. In that moment Zamasu had already sent her own blade in a fateful arc that slashed through the shorter one's neck, and in the next while Idiot #1 struggled to bring back his blade and raise a shaky guard, Zamasu had already stabbed him through where his heart most likely was, if he was anything like other mortals. At any rate, it didn't truly matter, the damage had been done. He would die soon enough.

She removed the blades from her body, her wounds closing behind them as if they had never been there to begin with. "What did you think I meant, when I told you I was immortal?" They gave no answer in their last moments of life, and Zamasu laughed at their fate, "Such is to be expected of those who dare challenge a god."

Before her, Vegetto scowled deeply and the survivor he was locked in combat with on with dawning horror at the new development. In the stands, the audience reacted even more strongly, gasps and screams rang out through the crowds, staring transfixed at the being before them who seemed to defy death itself. Music to her ears.

Atop his special seating, the ringmaster was outraged, and his voice boomed, "Enough of this, our people will not be made fools out of! Send in the elites, damn the ratings!"

Another circular hole opened up, and with a glance of disdain the sole surviving combatant broke off his assault of the saiyan before him, leaping backwards and into it before the offensive could be turned against him. It closed behind him, and for a moment there was silence.

This time the new enemies did emerge from within the crowds as Vegetto had guessed the first time, and as one six being leapt into the arena, taking only a few seconds to reach where the fusions awaiting them, ignoring Vegetto's curses about his unfinished fight along with Zamasu's taunting that the cavalry had arrived.

Their apparel was different than what Vegetto had seen before. Only two wielded swords at all, one with a long sword like he had grown accustomed to, and the other with two short ones, cycling them impatiently between his four arms. Two more carried axes instead, and the last were completely unarmed. They wore no armor at all, instead they were covered only with a thin black cloth unlike a gi, and a moment later Vegetto realized why. They could use ki.

Zamasu noticed too, and grit her teeth at the artificial disadvantage imposed upon them, and steeled herself for the assault. Of course, it wasn't enough, the lack of ki was too great a disadvantage. Zamasu cursed as the first seemed to disappear from sight, and nearby Vegetto found his sword had been knocked clean out of his hands in one quick swipe. Another and Zamasu was similarly disarmed. Vegetto ducked beneath a third strike, but before he could life his weapon found himself gasping for air, one of the unarmed fighters had embedded a fist in his chest. "Bastards…" he coughed out.

Zamasu abandoned her weapon altogether, and looked between her opponents as she attempted to regain her earlier confidence, "It doesn't matter, for I am still immortal! You can NEVER defeat me!" The elites gave no response, and before she could blink she found herself on the ground, groaning despite herself.

Only now did one of the six speak, one of the axe bearers, its low voice speaking monotonously, "You two shits have gotten too confident for your own good. It's not good policy, letting the foreigners win, makes the people doubt their government's absolute power. But trust me, by the end of this day, the two of you will be begging for your lives to be ended, immortality be damned. And only then will we finally end it."

He coated the shaft of his axe with ki, and brought it down upon Vegetto's head as he attempted to stand, so hard that the saiyan coughed out yellow dirt beneath him. Again and again the warrior jabbed him, using his weapon as little more than an overgrown stick to prolong the pain. Besides him, his allies joined in, beating down on the helpless, ki deprived fighters before them. He gave out a small chuckle as he kicked Vegetto with his boot, only this time it felt different. It felt like he had kicked a brick wall rather than man, and beside him his comrades began to experience similar results. Below them the saiyan began to stand slowly, despite their best efforts to stop him. Since when had he been so strong?

"Heh…" Vegetto gasped out, "you took too long, my ki has started to come back to me. It's barely anything, but its more than enough to deal with the likes of you…"

The axeman snarled, "Don't think you've won so easily, against all of us you can't possibly hope to survive!"

But the saiyan did nothing, "You don't understand. This fight… is already over."

It happened so fast, nobody really believed their eyes until a moment later. There was a flash of golden light, a gust of wind, and in the blink of an eye all six of the planet's greatest warriors (that the arena could spare for their uses) were lying in the arena wall, unconscious.

The aura around Vegetto faded, and he reverted back to his base as quickly as he had transformed, panting slightly. It seemed even now he only had a small fraction of his full power. Besides him, Zamasu rose as if she had never been harmed at all, although the immortality certainly helped. "It's a shame your power returned to you before mine did, I would have ensured that they stayed down permanently, and preferably repaid them for the damage they inflicted on my form."

She raised an arm, charging a small ball of ki in her arm and launching it straight at the ringmaster, but rather than the intended result, the air shimmered before it, and the ball detonated midair as if it had struck a wall. "A ki barrier? Clever. But I-" she stretched her other arm, and a dark portal appeared before it, "-am a god!" She fired a blast into the hole, but no ball emerged on the other side of the barrier, and the ringmaster remained unharmed. Instead, the portal grew.

"What is this? Why can't I control this portal? I opened it, should it not go to where I intend it to?"

Vegetto almost facepalmed. Almost. "You idiot, did you actually think you could control something like that with only a fraction of your power, at a longer range than normal?"

Realization dawned upon her, she lacked the energy to keep it stable! The portal was shifting, and as it grew it began to suck in the air around it, tugging at the two warriors. Easy to resist at first, the suction grew and grew until the two were dragged into it, and for the fourth time too many, Vegetto found himself falling.

 _'Here we go again…'_

* * *

 **More of a filler arc, but not really. Trevaacin really wanted a part in which they had no control in their ki, which was interesting, so I went along with it. Writing this was really fun, so we hope you all enjoyed it. So please review, and let us in on your thoughts of this chapter. Next one will be written concerning those messed up timelines and other Xenoverse stuff.**

 **Happy Holidays!**


	4. Chapter 4

**So…we're sorry. Please enjoy this chapter. We promise that we'll TRY to not go on another unintended hiatus again…**

* * *

 **Confusion On All Sides**

 **Planet Namek, Age 762**

Frieza starred in shock at the newly transformed Goku. Weren't saiyans only capable of transforming into giant monkeys?!

The Super Saiyan turned back to his pathetic child and said "Gohan. Take Piccolo and get to the ship. We can't use the Dragon Balls if they become inert again." The small saiyan seemed as shocked as Frieza, as he stood frozen.

Goku became frustrated. "Do as I tell you right now before I lose control of myself!" The saiyan child flinched, and picked up the fallen Namekian that Frieza had nearly killed just a few moments earlier.

Frieza lifted his hand, his pointer finger lit with red ki. "You're a fool if you think-" all of a sudden, Goku was right in front of him, gripping the emperor's wrist and stopping the Death Beam.

"Let go of me you filthy mon-ahh!" Frieza cried out as the Super Saiyan gripped his wrist with bone crushing force.

None of this had been apart of his plans. Really, it was simple. Take the Dragon Balls, have some fun and then destroy the planet. Where had it all gone so wrong? He took precautions years ago and yet before him, stood a saiyan capable of rivaling his own power.

"You're the scum of the universe, and I'm getting sick of it. Tell me, just how many more, how many of my friends have to die before you finally stop?! You...you killed my best friend. You killed Krillin!"

Frieza struggled to break free, and unconsciously trapped them both in a barrier of explosive energy. Goku noticed this, and decided to let him go.

Frieza jumped back, cradling his poor wrist. "Y-You...what are you?! Wait...n-no, please don't tell me you're that!"

Thoughts of Frieza killing Krillin filled Goku's mind, and he immediately began feeling angry again. But the dark thoughts continued, and disturbing images of Frieza killing Chi-Chi, Bulma, Roshi, Gohan and all those that he held dear ran rampant through his mind. The earth shook as a dark, sinister energy fell in place with Goku's raw Super Saiyan power.

"Frieza...now...I'm...FURIOUS!" Planet Namek shook from the explosion of Goku's raw energy erupting from his body. Frieza trembled in fear.

The newly transformed Super Saiyan 2 glared at the tyrant. "Face my wrath...FRIEZA!"

…

Chronoa watched the scene play out with worry. "Oh no, this is far worse than I imagined!"

Elder Kai popped up from behind her. "Oh? Let me see that." He snatched the scroll away from her, and the old Kaioshin's face became serious. "Indeed. This is highly concerning."

"Ace!" the red haired saiyan looked up from his seat. He and his apprentice, Lottus, were trying to keep the distortions at bay from within the Time Nest, while Trunks and Bardock were traveling through several timelines to stop the causes of the distortions.

"Um, yes my lady?" he asked, standing up uneasily. Chronoa took on a serious expression as she rolled up the scroll and tossed it at Ace. Ace caught it easily, and took a look at the events of that timeline. His eyebrows shot up rather high as he said "This is Goku's battle against Frieza. He...he shouldn't be anywhere near this powerful." Ace frowned. This was troublesome indeed.

Chronoa nodded, knowing Ace understood the gravity of this situation very well. "Yes, and I need you to go fix it."

Ace gripped the scroll, but didn't focus on going though time. Instead, he frowned at his superior. "My lady, but who's going to help you keep the distortions at bay from here? Lottus can't do it, he's still somewhat new."

Chronoa frowned, crossing her arms. "Ace, there's no one else that can keep the distortions at bay except you." Ace smiled, eyes turning to Lottus' form. "Well…"

"Surely you're not suggesting that Lottus go and fix it himself?" Ace nodded, but Chonoa didn't budge. "I can't do that. This mission is too important."

"My lady, with all due respect, I have to disagree. Lottus is my prodege, he's even more talented than I am. Please, I'm certain that he can take care of this distortion by himself. Well, maybe with some guidance, that is." Chronoa stared, and Ace held her stare. After a couple of seconds, she broke away from it, rolling her eyes. "Fine. Let's see what he can do."

Ace beamed at her, before he turned back towards his prodege, telling him "Hey Lottus? Guess what? You're going on your first real patrol! Isn't that exciting?!"

The purple haired saiyan looked shocked, before standing up and saluting, adjusting his scouter as he did so. "Alright!"

* * *

 **Alternate Timeline, Planet M-2, Age 789**

Trunks descended upon the strange world in a silver ray of light. He exhaled, and looked around.

He was in a strange looking forest. Well, really, the strange parts were the random splotches of metallic silver thrown around. Taking off into the air, he caught a good view of the planet. It would seem that at a time, this world belonged to technologically advanced beings, but it was now mostly ruins. There was life on this planet, surprisingly, but it felt odd. It felt tainted, like Cell's own ki signature.

 _'Then again, this planet is supposed to be inhabited by those so called Machine Mutants.'_ he thought to himself. This timeline just popped up randomly out of literally nowhere, so he hadn't had much time to study the events of this world. All he did know was that Beerus never woke up in this timeline, and that this world was now inhabited by a race of creatures of both equally mechanical and organic components. The very thought of such a race unsettled him. Growing up fearing machines for most of your youth did that to you.

Detecting several ki signatures in a ruined city, he decided to say hello to some of its inhabitants, although he stayed on guard. He landed in front of a ruined hospital. Or at least it looked like one. It was hard to tell, as not only was it ruined, but it was covered with more of that metallic silver that seemed to appear in splotches all around this planet.

"Um, hello?" the tiny little robots all turned to look at Trunks now. "My name is-"

"Intruder! Intruder! Alert! Alert!" Immediately, did the robots try to swarm him. It didn't really surprise Trunks all that much, as almost every mechanical opponent he had ever met had tried to kill him. One shot out a grappling claw from its 'stomach', to try and maybe immobilize Trunks, but the time traveler had easily ducked and grabbed the claw instead, swinging it around (along with the robot) like a chain and sickle. He used it to batt away the machine's mechanical companions away. With the 'Machine Mutants' now beaten and dented, Trunks dropped the little robot.

"Phew. Well that was...short lived." That was when the Trunks' ears tingled, and he rolled out of the way to avoid an incoming missile. He avoided the missile, but could not avoid the following explosion, unfortunately.

"Gah!" Trunks was thrown through a window and at least two walls. He growled as he tried to stand up. "Just what the hell was-" Trunks was cut off mid-sentence as the ceiling rumbled and then finally caved in. Trunks could feel the force of several highly explosive and concentrated attacks heading his way.

 _'I just got here, damn it!'_ it didn't seem like his opponent wanted to negotiate.

Outside of the destroyed building, four distinguishable Machine Mutants had just finished eliminating the organic parasite that had entered their world. The one in charge, a red colored Machine Mutant by the name of Nezi, put his fists on his hips, looking proud with his chin held up high.

"Well done, Sigma Force! We have successfully eliminated the organic parasite!" the Sigma Force cheered, and saluted.

"Let us inform the general our succe-" Nezi was cut off as he felt something painful penetrate his back and through his abdomen. A gloved hand, attached to a black sleeve.

"Don't worry, I'll inform your general of your failure." the blue haired saiyan released a shockwave from his hand, blowing the commander of the Sigma Force to pieces. The rest of the team looked what Trunks could only decipher was shock: he couldn't really tell from their facial expressions, because they didn't have faces, but their postures seemed to give it away.

"Impossible! You could not have possibly survived, nor have just destroyed our leader." exclaimed Bizu. Trunks shrugged.

"You all possess impressive levels of power, but it'll take far more than that to beat me."

"Incompetent creature! We will show you the might of the Sigma Force!" All three machines flew at him, and Trunks didn't feel the need to draw his sword here. The big one, Bizu, charged at Trunks with a punch, leaving himself wide open. Trunks decided to not parry the low and decided a low elbow to the abdomen should stop him. However, the giant gray machine liquified and turned into metal balls, taking Trunks by complete surprise as he awkwardly stumbled in mid air as he hit nothing. Bizu, in his current state, let himself fly past the saiyan, the metal balls hitting him like a nerd getting pummeled in dodgeball. When Trunks finally regained his composure, he was backhanded downwards by Bizu.

The other two, Natt and Ribet flew towards his direction, with Ribet launching a missile from his chest cavity. Trunks could've easily dodged, had the small Natt not extended both of his arms and stopped him from doing so. Trunks could only watch as the missile hit him with full force.

BOOM!

The resulting explosion had covered their sight of the saiyan, making the Sigma Force think they had won.

"Alright. We must now report to the general, and inform him of our unfortunate loss." said Ribet, to which Bizu agreed to.

"Yes, we will need to replace him-" Natt didn't get to finish, as a sword had cut right through his midsection, severing his top and bottom halves. Trunks decided not to sheath his sword. With two energy slashes, he had annihilated both Ribet and Bizu, turning them into nothing but ashes.

"That was much harder, but still nothing all the same." Trunks turned to face the mini spy bot that had been watching him throughout his entire fight. He raised an open palm. "Tell your general you'll be needing a lot more than that to take down what I am. I'm on a mission, and part of it is to erase you for good. See you soon." With an energy blast, the spy bot had been destroyed.

…

The giant general glared through the camera of the spybot, before it was destroyed completely.

"General, what will be our next course of action?" asked an M-2 bot. Rildo said nothing, as he changed into liquid metal, and made his way through the planet to face his foe. The doctor would most certainly be pleased to hear that they'd caught such a fine specimen for the creation of Baby.

* * *

 **Alternate Timeline, Planet Petropia, Age 782**

Bardock descended onto the crystal ground once he saw the coast was clear. He was on some random planet, which he knew nothing about, not even it's natives. He should really stop rushing into these missions blindly. Then again, prepared wasn't exactly his style.

He slowly walked along the crystal path, making his way towards the city of emeralds. He called it that because there were buildings that looked like literal emeralds. Talk about unlimited resources.

Bardock finally made his way towards the city's border. It had two guards, but Bardock almost would have taken them for crystallized statues, had they not moved.

"Outworlder! State your name and occupation, or we shall rid ourselves of you!" grunted the human-like crystal alien. Some might call him intimidating, what with his giant spikes on his head and back and black armor onesie, but Bardock wasn't in the mood for this shit.

"The name's Bardock, you glass doll, and my job is to kick the asses of people who don't belong here." The guard didn't take to kindly to that, and neither did the other one, as they both charged at him in an attempt to take him down. Bardock easily parried their blows and swerved his way around their pitiful attempts to attack him. The guards grew frustrated, and the one on the right formed swords from his crystal hands, charging at the father of Goku once more. He swung both of his arm swords, and Bardock caught them both. He brought his head back, and smashed it against the guard's head, causing cracks to form as the alien passed out. Bardock turned towards the other guard, who looked scared out of his mind, but didn't back down. Instead, he smacked his palms on the ground, and large sharp crystals appeared out of the ground, taking the saiyan by complete surprise. Instincts kicked in however, as he merely flew upwards, and threw a weak ki blast. What he wasn't expecting, was the guard to simply catch it.

"What?!" The ki blast shrunk, as the energy was absorbed into the guard, his crystallized body now glowing gold.

"Fool! We Petrosapiens can absorb energy, and then redirect it back at a greater power!" With a shout, the 'Petrosapien' (a mouthful if you asked Bardock) threw a much stronger ki blast than the one he'd thrown previously. With its speed, Bardock was forced to catch it, and surprisingly, he struggled with keeping it at bay. He grunted as he began to gain leverage, only to feel it push back tenfold.

 _'Damn glass doll! He's continuously throwing energy blasts to help push this back! Fine, looks like I'm going gold.'_

With a yell, the energy blast Bardock had been pushing had disintegrated. The Petrosapien guard could only wonder what had happened as Bardock dug his fist into his stomach. He keeled over his arm, before Bardock let him drop towards the ground. He powered down, letting his power fade back from blonde to regular black and his eyes from teal to onyx.

"Well that was…unexpected." Bardock flew over the border, only to stop right in his tracks as an entire army of Petrosapiens had suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

"Wha-but-oh to HELL WITH THIS!" With a war cry, Bardock's hair spiked up once more, but this time even sharper as bio-electricity reinforced his aura. His sharp teal eyes glared at the army of glass dolls he now had to deal with.

"Well?! Come at me, you damn china dolls!" Surprisingly, none came at him. Instead, they moved out of the way, as if clearing a path. A tall, regular humanoid looking man wearing a white cloak appeared. The golden boots and forearm guards was all he needed to identify the man, along with his tail.

"Y-You…" what was he doing here out of all places?

"Well, well, well. Look who decided to show up from the dead after fifteen years, Kakarot." The saiyan of legend snarled. He looked…good. He wasn't on the verge of insanity like he was supposed to be. His skin was a nice tan, and he looked healthy.

"How are you alive?! You're supposed to be dead, Broly!" Bardock shouted. This was impossible. Just what is this?

Broly cackled. "Oh? I'm pretty sure you're supposed to be the dead one, Kakarot. But no matter." Broly looked him up and down, then licked his lips. "I see you've gotten stronger." With a yell, Broly transformed. Instantly. Like, no usual skin cracking, green light, bulky muscles, loss of pupils, etc.

No, Broly's emerald aura was calm. His gold-green hair was the same, but he had increased in height several inches. His muscles had gained some mass, but it wasn't bulky. And his eyes, they were still there. No blankness, just angry teal. Angry, but in control. Meaning…

 _'Oh shit, he's mastered his power.'_

* * *

 **Universe 9, Unknown Planet v2.0, Age still unknown**

For some, falling is a source of joy, of freedom. For others, it is their greatest fear. But for Vegetto, it had now become a nuisance. Had it not lasted for but a split second, the fused fighter would have uttered a few choice words at his current situation. So when he found himself on the ground of yet another unknown planet, he felt nothing but relief.

The fall through Zamasu's portal had been rather uneventful, really. From the moment Vegetto had been dragged into it, he had emerged instantly wherever it had led, and promptly fallen to wherever he now happened to be. In his past lives as Vegeta and Kakarot, Vegetto had experienced many forms of transport, and this happened to be his least favorite.

Choosing to express his frustration with a few mumbled words, Vegetto pulled himself to his feet and took note of his surroundings. All things considered, this seemed like a perfectly normal planet, nothing he'd never seen before. The ground was a sun bleached yellow, barren of most plant life and scorching under the blue sun above. In the distance, hills filled the horizon, and he could almost glimpse what may have been a form of trees. Or strange architecture, one could never tell. The sky began as the same yellow as the soil beneath his feet, likely due to the occasional wind lifting the dust into the air, and gradually faded into a pale blue, blending with the star that illuminated it all. Most noticeably, however, was the heat. Vegetto was already sweating,

Returning his attention to what was close to him, the saiyan noted first the position of his enemy: Zamasu was groaning several feet to his right, and if he focused he could just make out the sound of her cursing her own stupidity, along with just about everything they had encountered in the past few days. To his slight surprise, the swords they had wielded not five minutes earlier (although it had felt like ages) were there as well, lying on the ground between the two. Other than that, they were alone.

Vegetto made no move to pick up his fallen weapon. He didn't need it, his energy had returned, if only in part. Before him, Zamasu began to stand. Her movements were drained, sluggish. That stunt had drained far more from her than she had counted on, and, well, he had always been stronger, that went without question. She dragged one arm before her, then the other, and finally pushed them to lift her body from the dusty earth she found herself on. Her legs wobbled, but she stood, the dirt clinging to her body gradually falling. A cough, and she expelled what she had unwittingly swallowed.

Now both conscious, the two stared one another down. Neither dared make the first move. They had known it would come to this, the two enemies cast their differences aside only when it was necessary. Now, they were alone, no common enemy in sight. Their former death match could resume. A slight breeze brought movement to the still landscape, uninterrupted by the two foes. Still the silence persisted.

It was the fallen kai that first broke the peace. She spoke no words, none were needed, she simply acted. Less than a second, and what little distance between them had been crossed. It was a glancing blow, just barely touching the saiyan's cheek. He grinned, the wait was over.

There was no holding back this time, no warm up. A flash of light, and Vegetto had transformed into the legend of his people. The Super Saiyan retaliated, and a flurry of fists knocked back the fallen god, she gave some ground with a scowl. He ascended no higher, but only because he lacked the strength.

Zamasu released her own aura, silver and filled with malice, and the ground churned beneath their feet. The dust blew away from the strengthening winds, and soon a clear circle had been formed around them. Their shouts pierced the silence of the plain, and with no warning, their fists collided once more.

Fist blocked fist, a strong kick was parried with another, each good hit was matched with a counter. The two fighters rose into the air, never ceasing their combat. Time and time again, gold collided with silver, and the shockwaves rocked the land. For a time, it seemed they were even. Indeed, neither had received a serious blow, both fought with equal vigor.

Perhaps a single second passed, as each launched a thousand blows upon the other, and the air itself trembled before their wrath. Finally, a shift. Zamasu faltered, her punch went wide, and her opponent smirked. Vegetto wasted no time, and before Zamasu could do more than begin a curse at her own foolishness, she found the saiyan's fist embedded in her own gut.

Zamasu swore, more loudly this time, and lashed out again. Sloppily, her arm cut through the air while the rival fusion easily ducked beneath it, and a strong kick sent her plummeting to the ground. She caught her fall, righted herself midair, and with one arm sent a blast of ki at the golden fighter. Vegetto swatted it aside, but when he looked back to his opponent, found that she had vanished. In a lapse of judgement he would later regret, Vegetto looked first with his eyes rather than his ki, and when he finally found where Zamasu had gone, this was only because her fist was firmly in his face.

Zamasu smirked as her enemy fell back a foot and hastily threw his guard back up, and the two resumed their duel. Their fists collided for what may have been the hundredth time that fight, and as they did so, Vegetto's eyes narrowed, and he grit his teeth. Zamasu smirked at his apparent frustration, and opened her mouth to chastise the saiyan. She never got the chance.

Faster than the kai's eyes could track, Vegetto struck her. Two quick strikes to the torso, and she was stunned for the moment. Another swift kick, and Zamasu slammed into the ground. She coughed, and got back to her feet. The fused saiyan landed before her.

"You can't honestly think you've already won?" Zamasu coughed our, regaining her posture, "our fight has just begun."

Vegetto chuckled at this, "No, you'd already lost from the moment this began."

"What? Going to give some speech about how much you were holding back? Save your breath, my immortality remains. You could be a thousand times stronger than I am, but in the end you're just a mortal."

"You know what, I think I'll just show you."

Zamasu's eyes widened, perhaps from his sudden exclamation, but far more likely from the blade of ki she suddenly found piercing her chest. The self proclaimed god stumbled, coughing up blood. Her body healed, and she stood once more, only for a strong blow to the side to send her tumbling back into the dirt.

The saiyan frowned, "You know, you're not quite putting up as good a fight as I was hoping for."

Zamasu picked herself off the ground, making a show of her lack of injuries, "Well I'm terribly sorry then, I should have remembered the insufferable craving for violence most mortals possess."

He scoffed at this, "Oh no, I'm just sad there won't be much of a story to tell when I'm through with you."

"I wouldn't worry about that. You know your saying, dead men tell no tales."

Again, the golden saiyan moved faster than her eyes could track, though this time she caught the fist aimed for her jaw. "You know, your movements are becoming predictable. Though I shouldn't have expected better from your kind."

Vegetto didn't bother responding, and let his actions speak for him. Using his point of contact, Vegetto yanked Zamasu forwards, and with the momentum threw her into the air. Faster than she could recover, he was already beneath her, and a second punch had the apprentice soaring skyward.

The fusion below tensed, his golden aura flaring around him. He stretched his arms to either side, and his energy burned ever brighter as it concentrated in his hands. "I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU, THIS IS IT!" He brought his arms together, and the sphere of blue light began to outshine all that was around it, tinting the landscape to reflect it. "FINAL…" He pulled the energy back as it spun, lightning crackling around the orb, "KAMEHAMEHA!" his arms shot back in front of him, launching the beam. Gold spiraled around cyan light as the attack raced forward, and its target could only watch in horror as she was engulfed. Vegetto allowed himself to revel in his victory, perhaps a moment too soon.

His limited energy, still sealed by the unknown serum, chose this of all moments to falter. His beam waned, shrinking further and further until it disappeared entirely. Zamasu fell to the ground, charred and somewhat deformed, but alive. Lasting damage was no worry for her. The near victorious saiyan fell to one knee, panting, and as his energy ceased its vibrant glow his hair darkened back to its natural brown shade. He groaned, both in exhaustion and frustration, and settled upon merely glaring at the survivor of his ultimate attack. It was all he could still do.

Zamasu shakily brought herself upright, and laughed maniacally, "You see?! You cannot possibly hope to defeat…" whatever she had to say was cut short, as only two paces towards her fallen foe she too collapsed, her half mortal body giving way to its damage. Immortality, it seemed, did not grant her infinite energy to accompany it. Pain too had not been removed, and now the impact of the many blows she had sustained finally caught up to her.

The threat neutralized for the moment, Vegetto allowed his fully mortal frame to slack as well, and accepted the small comfort of lying still. Faintly, his senses picked up Zamasu cursing as he had grown accustomed to, saying among other things, "Even now, we lack the strength to kill one another? Is it really our fate to be stuck with each other? Gowasu must be laughing at me, trapped with a pathetic mortal just as he suggested I do of my own free will. A waste of time." She laughed at some of the irony in her situation.

For awhile, the two lay still. Not by choice of course, exhaustion had already made that for them. In parts, the two felt vastly different emotions. Vegetto was ashamed. He had failed. Weakened, but no more so than his opponent, and he had faltered in the moment of truth. This had never happened before. Even in the brief stunt involving his capture, in the end everything came up his way. He was Vegetto, born to win and nothing else. Strength was all he had to set him apart, and it had not been enough this time. The time for his defusion had passed countless times by this moment, and yet here he remained. Worthless. He steeled himself. He could remember defeat, though the memories were not his own. Strength would return, then he could go all out.

Zamasu was frustrated. Very, very frustrated. She had come too far to stop her plans here. Two wishes on the Super Dragon Balls, ages searching for the perfect timeline to begin, a dozen carefully planned assassinations. She had been home free, nothing could stop her. She was a god, and a mortal dared stand in defiance, one she could not reign judgement down upon. She would be seething, had she not remembered such emotions were the hallmark of worthless mortals, flawed as the rest of them. It would do no good to fall to their level.

(Though she failed to realize that she had already stooped to that level the moment she killed her master, and again when she made her first wish on the Super Dragon Balls)

Time moved, even as they didn't. The blue sun sank into the distance, and the air cooled around them, the blistering heat fading as the world around them dimmed. Vegetto was the first to break out of his musings. Their fight may have ended in a draw, but that was no excuse to let his guard down. Sensing the shift, Zamasu got up as well. She took her time, dragging out her movements. Her opponent couldn't kill her, and she was more than willing to flaunt this.

The two eyed one another, but neither made a move against the other. Until they could rely on their full power again, both knew there was no point. Zamasu began to speak, likely a taunt, but she was interrupted by a loud growl. She was startled, but this turned to disgust when the saiyan before her only laughed.

"I guess I've worked up an appetite, huh? I should probably find something to eat, I'm starving!" Vegetto grinned, and Zamasu was surprised to realize there was none of the anger or arrogance she had grown accustomed to. He began to leave, and she was left confused by his sudden shift. Could all mortals change this much in a single moment. It was almost as if he was two different people… well, besides the fact that he was literally two people but- she caught herself, and reeled in her thoughts. No point in wasting time pondering a single mortal, she knew them all for what they truly were.

With a start, Zamasu realized the other fusion had nearly vanished from her vision, flying in the direction of some nearby hills. She waited another moment, and then took off after him, careful to leave some distance. Keep your friends close and your enemies closer… (not that she had any friends anyway)

Not far off, a rock scuttled off from where it had lain. This was quite an interesting development, and the khan would be pleased to hear of it in advance...

* * *

 **Again, sorry on both my and Trevaacin's behalf. Schoolwork has me all caught up, and Trevaacin had his exams. Both we're back now!**

 **Follow, favorite and review if you guys want faster chapters…**


	5. Chapter 5

**Nobody Like Henchmen**

 _ **Universe 9, Unknown Planet v2.0, Age unknown, again, stop asking**_

By the time Zamasu caught up with Vegetto, a halo of faint light had risen to take the place of the planet's set sun, covering the landscape in a silver glow. From where she paused in the sky, gliding down slowly, she could just glimpse the saiyan perched on a rock outcrop in the desolate landscape, eating a charred piece of what appeared to be some sort of cactus. He had been gazing solemnly into a shallow pond before him, but perked slightly as he sensed her approach.

The fusion swallowed his recent bite and looked up, eyeing the former kai from his ledge, and addressed her, "You followed me, huh? I'm starting to think you've taken a liking to me."

Zamasu balked, if only for a moment, and were he not a saiyan she would have doubted he'd caught the action, "Don't be absurd. I'm only keeping track of the greatest thorn in my side, nothing more. Don't delude yourself, you're as disgusting as any other mortal."

He chuckled at her outburst, returning his attention to the meager meal before him, and in his silence Zamasu felt it fit to go on, "So that's the meal you sought out, huh? I must admit, it doesn't look quite appealing."

Vegetto shrugged, not quite looking up at her where she had paused in the sky, hovering lazily, "There's not much out here, we're in some sort of desert-"

"I almost didn't notice, I was thinking this was a jungle."

He ignored the interruption, "-and it was between the cacti and looking for grubs," he shivered at the thought, "I guess I've always wondered what cactus tasted like, not half bad once cooked." The saiyan gestured at a pile of discarded shells, almost as high as the rock he sat upon, "And they're pretty filling if you get enough of them."

The fallen apprentice stared, "You ate that many? That's disgusting"

Undeterred, Vegetto laughed as he tossed what was left of the one he was eating onto the pile, "You're half saiyan yourself now, I bet you could eat this much if you wanted to."

"I'd sooner choke on my own spit."

"Whatever you say," Vegetto didn't bother noticing her glare as he continued, "There doesn't seem to be much we can do at this moment. It feels like there's some sort of town that way…" he accompanied this remark with a point off to the left of him, "but most people don't really seem to react well when an alien flies into their homes in the middle of the night." He gazed at the sky for a moment, his eyes darting between the stars, "Vegeta's been halfway across the universe under Frieza's orders, and none of these constellations look familiar, so this can't be in Universe 7, there's nowhere to go."

The fusion hopped to the ground, landing before the water, and knelt as he gathered some water to drink. As he did all of this, he was careful to ensure his back was never turned completely to Zamasu, something she took amusement in. "What?" she asked almost jokingly, "are you afraid I'll stab you when your guard is down?"

"I wouldn't put it past you."

"As if, that would make me no better than the corrupt mortals I plan to exterminate."

"Didn't stop you from killing your master."

"Tch, you dare?" She almost looked offended, not that Vegetto cared, "A mortal such as yourself couldn't hope to understand my methods…" Her sentence trailed off, uncertain, and her adversary was quick to jump on this.

"You're mortal too, even with your fusion. Not to mention you've continuously shown that you're willing to stoop down to our level in order to make ends meet. I don't think you're as sure as you pretend to be."

Zamasu gave no response, whether from indignance or being truly stumped, but floated a bit away, before lowering herself to the ground. Vegetto regarded the distance between them, before settling against the rocks behind him. She seemed neutral for the moment, but one can never be too careful.

The night passed, more quickly for one than the other, as the sky rotated with the earth, and in time day returned. Vegetto slept lightly, his senses always alert, as he had learned in the days of Vegeta's youth. Zamasu slept more heavily, still assured in her immortality, and having never known real danger. Fool.

When the light returned, the blue sun bleaching the barren landscape, it was the saiyan that rose first, his potara glinting in the morning sun. No breeze came to ease the growing heat, and he mentally groaned. The day was always worse in climates like this. He had been a soldier once, in one of his previous lives, and knew better than to show discomfort, and he didn't have to look to know that his enemy was rising herself, lazily in her usual manner.

The fusion didn't give her the satisfaction of acknowledgment, and with a quick drink (because dehydration is no joke) took to the sky. As expected, she followed suit at a distance, and the two headed off to the nearest cluster of kis.

The journey was as eventful as one would expect it to be, essentially, nothing happened. By midday a small town was visible in the distance, built alongside what could almost be described as a river. The buildings that filled it were nothing out of the ordinary, mud brick shelters reinforced with whatever materials were available, mostly sandstone and dried woods. The town had the same sun bleached color to it as the landscape, and could he not sense the energy of its inhabitants, Vegetto would have almost missed it.

He landed smoothly on the outskirts, facing what looked to be the town's main street, though what few residents were walking it merely watched wearily. Like their home, they too were fairly normal, a short race of grey skinned individuals, which peered at him through amber eyes devoid of pupils.

One stopped to adjust his (or so the saiyan guessed) white tunic, and the populace went back to what they had been doing before. Not the reaction he had been expecting.

"Not quite a sophisticated people," Zamasu remarked from behind him, "you'd think they'd have the manners to greet their betters. Oh wait, I meant singular." a jab thrown in the saiyan's direction. But Vegetto spared her no response, his interest fixed on the new location. He strode into the town, Zamasu close behind, and noted with interest the dust kicked up by his boots. It seemed to have been quite some time since the last time the bleached stone streets had been swept, they only added to the run down feel of the town.

By the time he had reached the center of town, an old tower whose shadow cast upon the road that circled it on all sides (maybe a kind of sundial? He wasn't sure.), the saiyan had realized nobody was probably going to approach them on their own. Even standing amongst them, the townsfolk only occasionally seemed to glance their way, and he was getting the feeling many were outright ignoring the two foreigners.

Unsure of how to respond, he laughed, "Guess they don't like people, huh? We're going to have to talk to them ourselves."

Zamasu didn't seem convinced herself, "Don't waste your breath, it's clear none of these common mortals could help us with anything of use. I doubt they're much more interesting than the dirt they're so fond of living in."

Again, her remarks went ignored, and her saiyan companion was already halfway through the door of what looked to be a public establishment when he turned back to face her, "Well, are you coming? Or have you abandoned your 'I'm following you to make sure you don't try anything I'd do without a thought' attitude?"

"If that's what you call it… I'll take my time."

He shrugged, and turned away. Passing through the thick stone walls of the open doorway, the fusion arrived in a dimly lit room, but pleasantly cool in temperature. Two of the aliens sat in a corner, so he went to approach them, that is until Zamasu gave a fake cough. He sighed, and turned to look at her, and she was giving him a look that reminded him of Bulma whenever she expected Vegeta to take out the trash. Odd. "What?"

"Do you not realize how backwater this planet is? Do they even speak galactic standard?"

Vegetto blinked, realizing she was right. It was unlikely such a primitive race (seemingly) spoke their language.

He scratched the back of his head, before giving a reassuring smile. "Well…I've always been lucky before, right?"

Zamasu narrowed her eyes and gave him a scathing look, before rolling her eyes.

Vegetto approached the two natives and asked, "I'm sorry, my friend and I seem to be lost. Mind telling us what planet this is, and how to get off?"

The two stared at him for an uncomfortable amount of time, and right before he left, one spoke with a raspy voice that betrayed his exhaustion, "Outsider, leave this place. None are welcome here, the khan has no love for those he cannot control."

Vegetto was taken aback, "You can't just expect me to leave, I have no way of getting off this planet." His eyes narrowed slightly, just enough to show he was serious, "And I don't plan on taking the orders of a despot, no matter what he calls himself."

The strangers laughed, a sound as hoarse as their voices, and one managed between his chuckles, "Fool, you aren't the first to oppose the khan, and you won't be the last. There is nothing he does not see, nothing over which he does not rule. He is the lord of the sacred water itself on our world, and his word is life and death. He is the god king, and none but a fool would stand without fear of being stricken."

Zamasu, watching from a distance, raised an eyebrow at the last remark. "So, there's another mortal with the complex of a god? Heresy, I'll strike him down where he stands."

"Yeah, sure." the saiyan agreed, "Not like we can avoid fighting him anyways, seems this guy's going to be out for us from the start."

"Even better, I'd rather not lower myself to coming to him. This is as it should be."

The natives were staring at them now, and one took a swig from the clay mug he was holding, the liquid steamed as it met his mouth. "I hope you two bought your coffins in advance."

Zamasu laughed, turning and throwing behind her as she left, "I wouldn't worry about that. I prefer to leave no taste of the blemishes I cleanse the cosmos of."

The other fusion made to leave as well, leaving the two behind him to discuss their foolishness. No point bothering with defeatists, they'd only weigh them down. Delusional ally (of sorts) or not, Vegetto had no doubt this conflict wouldn't last long.

He arrived back on the main circle, to find Zamasu standing as she impatiently tapped her feet. Vegetto raised an eyebrow, "You left just to stand outside? Isn't it better to stay where it's cool?"

"You heard the scum, they're coming to us. All I have to do is stand out as much as possible. I'd blow something up, but I don't want to deal with your self righteous nagging."

"How thoughtful of you."

"Of course, it'd be unfitting for a superior being to overlook their subjects." Odd, if she was planning on killing everybody, then what subjects was she referring to?

"And here I was thinking you were warming up to me." He feigned a disappointed expression, "I'm hurt."

She rolled her eyes, and turned away, focusing her attention on glaring at everyone who as much as dared to look at her. She may have decided not to take any lives, but with her expression it certainly wasn't an easy choice. Not that she'd have to wait out long, Vegetto almost felt sorry for whatever grunts first approached them. Almost. Nobody likes henchmen.

Judging time by the constant tapping of the kai's foot, about fifteen minutes passed before they were finally approached. Two of the aliens, looking much more nourished than the others, their skin a darker grey, walked up to them, the one on the right brandishing a form of primitive blunt weapon.

The other addressed them, "Foreigners, state your business before the authority of the khan, or prepare to meet his judgement."

"To end the pitiful existence of your pathetic leader." Zamasu shot back without hesitation. She met their shocked faces with a smug grin, and Vegetto smacked his hand against his face. This wasn't going to end well.

"So much for the diplomatic option…"

"Idiots!" The armed one of the duo yelled, "No mortal can stand before the god of kings, whose power is as absolute as the rising of the sun!"

"Gee," Vegetto commented, "It sounds like they get their slogans fed to them every hour of the day, nobody can stop shouting them."

"You'd think," Zamasu added, "And here I was almost caring for the sounds that come out of their mouths, but," she continued as she raised an arm, "I've always prefered silence."

To be fair, neither had really expected two foot soldiers to put up much of a challenge. So when Vegetto blinked to find Zamasu impaling one of them with her signature ki blade, he simply knocked out the other with a chop to the neck. At least he'd live.

The townsfolk around them gawked. Either nobody had ever been bold enough to do something like that, or they'd already surpassed what they'd ever seen before. Either way, he took it as a good sign, this didn't seem to be too much of a problem they were dealing with.

"Well that was dull." Zamasu commented, pulling her hand out of the corpse. Vegetto 'hn'ed.

"We still have the others to take care of, you know." He gestured towards the cannon fodder standing in front of them. They all gawked, as if not expecting that to end so quickly against their favor. Vegetto didn't blame them, both himself and Zamasu were beings beyond anyone's comprehension.

"Yes I'm aware, but obviously these pests are far weaker than the ones we just killed individually." Zamasu almost seemed to pout, an expression Vegetto didn't even think she was capable of.

 _'Then again, she does have some screws loose. Plus a few saiyan genes now. That's never a good combination.'_ Vegetto had a quick flashback of his old partner Nappa, shuddering. He could still hear his voice, even now…

"So shall we attack, or…" Zamasu trailed off, though her wish was quite clear.

"No need, if anyone was planning on challenging us, they certainly won't now. Best to let the word spread."

"And wait? As if."

"I thought you were happy your victims were coming to you for a change."

"Tch, fine. There must be something to do in this mud pile. Maybe we can even learn something about this 'khan' we're up against. Gowasu was always fond of that sort of thing."

"These guys aren't all too friendly, now that I look at them. If they know something, I don't think they'll tell us."

Zamasu smirked, her ki blade, which had yet to disperse, seemed to hum brighter with her anticipation, "Oh, I wouldn't worry about whether they're willing to tell us or not. I have my ways of hearing what I need to know."

"No," the saiyan scowled at the thought, "don't waste your time and energy on it. None of these guys seem to know much about their leader except his supposed divinity. We won't get anything but hearsay if we press them. Might as well go in blind."

She gave an exaggerated sigh, "Oh well, there goes the fun. Ah well…" she began examining the civilians frozen in place before them, "I don't suppose there's anyone you wouldn't miss?"

Vegetto rolled his eyes, raising his arm just slightly to gesture to a nearby building, "Try me, if you're eager to go through that wall."

The two regarded one another, oblivious to their surroundings as the townsfolk began slowly backing away from the two overwhelming strangers, until they found themselves the only ones standing in the now deserted street. Finally, Zamasu lost interest in their staredown and went to walk around the town. She made a full circle around the main center, before arriving back where the other fusion still stood, his gloved hands folded across his chest as he passively watched the horizon.

"This is taking too long," she complained, "Are they questioning my divinity?"

"It's been ten minutes."

"I could fly around this planet in half if I wanted to, that's too many. You'd think they'd be eager to meet their judgement."

"Pfft, I doubt you've ever found someone who was willing to just come and die."

"Oh, they always claim they're there for something else. Justice, vengeance, honor, I've lost track. But the end result is always the same. They show up, and I kill them. What's the difference? But these mortals can't even be bothered to do that. Pathetic."

"You know, you could try waiting another five minutes."

"And give them the satisfaction of making me wait on their whim? No, a god will not be brought down to dependent on the timing of mortals. I'll go to them."

"Do you even-" She took off before he could finish, "Well, I tried. Wild goose chase, here we come."

With a leap, the saiyan took to the skies in pursuit of the former kai, whose silver aura was already dwindling in the distance. The town shrunk behind him, and within moments it was entirely out of sight. He focused on the energy around him, paying no need to the wind as it whipped through his hair, and took note of the cluster of kis they seemed to heading directly towards. Only a second later, he realized he didn't necessarily have to follow his enemy around from one end of the planet to the other, but cast away the thought. He wasn't quite sure why she had taken after him earlier, but at least he had a reason. Couldn't let the maniac go on any murder sprees. At least, not preventable ones. Again, nobody liked henchmen.

Pushing aside fond memories of Vegeta's final encounter with Cui, he brought his focus back to the genocide prone woman he was following. The landscape had already changed drastically below them, where there was dust and sparse plants there was now a flat expanse of grasses coating the surroundings. Like the soil, these too shared the yellowish tint of the sky above them, almost merging with the sky that hung above.

Zamasu began to slow, and before he could reach her, a ki blast shot to the earth. He accelerated, before reaching where the kai hovered in the air.

"What'd you do that for?" Vegetto demanded of her, smug as usual as she watched the smoke clear from her handiwork.

"Just a warning shot, I promise. Wouldn't want to cut short the main event."

"And if you picked the wrong target? Did you even look before firing?"

"Do you doubt my divine judgement? As I god, I would never-" the smoke cleared, revealing a few smoldering carcasses of large cattle, the remainder of the group that had been grazing having fled a short distance away. "I may have slightly misjudged that."

"So much for divine judgement."

"I meant to do that."

"Sure you did."

Zamasu struggled to come up with a retort, then gave up and fell silent. Vegetto surveyed the small crater in the ground, before his eyes widened with realization, "Dammit, we did it again!"

"Did what again?"

"What we've been doing for over a week now! Do something, banter for a bit, then fall silent without conclusion."

"Well, what do you expect me to do, not chastise you for all the foolish things that make you mortals inferior?"

"It's starting to get old, yeah."

"Tch," she frowned, "I have no other reason to speak with one such as yourself but for my own amusement, don't start thinking otherwise."

Vegetto rolled his eyes and let it drop, she didn't seem to be in a talkative mood. (Not that she ever was, but that wasn't the point at the moment. Things needed to be done.) He kicked one of the bodies, noting how the ground shifted as it rolled slightly. "That's odd. The ki around here doesn't feel as strong as when we arrived."

"Of course," Zamasu replied in a condescending voice, "I killed a few of them."

The saiyan suppressed the urge to groan. "No, not like that. It's like there's something around here hiding from us."

"What? You looking for another hidden passage or something? In the middle of nowhere?"

"You're the one who thought the khan dude was around here."

"And clearly he has enough brains to finally realize the foolishness of challenging the gods, and buried himself like the worm he is."

"Or maybe he just doesn't know where we flew off to."

Vegetto, who had been pacing as he maintained his conversation with his adversary, paused as he approached a small rock jutting out from the ground. "Do you think pressing this will do anything?"

Zamasu yawned, "Go ahead. I'm heading back, every minute is another delay for my plan."

She turned to leave, and with a shrug the saiyan stepped on it. Nothing happened, as expected. Zamasu chucked, but in the moment she looked back, she tripped over one of the animals she had slain previously. "Ugh," she complained, "disgusting creatures, even in death." With a scowl, she raised her arm and disintegrated what was left of the poor beast of sorts. "At least now it isn't in my sight."

The ground shook slightly, to the surprise of the kai standing in the now deeper, slightly irregular crater, "I didn't think I used that much-" the ground burst from beneath her, a rock surfacing and raising as more pushed from beneath it. Dirt flew into the air, clouding the vision of both fusions as they attempted to view the spectacle. A loud grinding sound overwhelmed their hearing, and when it finally died down, what could only be described as a figure made of joined stones stood before them.

Vegetto grinned, "Ah, I forgot why I loved journeying through space. Never a dull day. This should be fun."

Closer to it, Zamasu sighed, "I suppose I have to reduce this pile of rocks to mere pebbles. I feel more like a laborer than a god."

The beast shifted, its body grinding against itself, but gave no battle cry, probably because it lacked a mouth. It looked between the two of them, then leaped over both… and kept going, headed into the distance.

"Hey!" Vegetto shouted at the retreating form, "Come back! Let us fight you!"

"Coward!" Zamasu added, "You think you can dirty my clothes jumping from the ground like that and get away with it? I'll kill you!"

Focused on their new pursuit with the seriousness of a game, neither noticed the creature was headed towards the next nearest groups of kis.

* * *

 _ **Alternate Timeline, Planet M-2, Age 790**_

Trunks wiped away the strange metallic fluid that was on his sword. He could already sense the 'final boss' approaching. His energy was suppressed, yet he could tell that this 'general' far surpassed the henchmen. Thank the kais for that, as nobody liked henchmen. He turned around, his deadly blade poised at the enemy.

"So you're the creature that took down the Sigma Force. I have to say, congratulations are in order." Trunks narrowed his eyes at the general.

"So you're the general, huh? You're certainly much more different than the ones before you." He removed the sword from the general's neck.

"Yes, as I'm sure you've noticed, even my suppressed strength surpasses all of the Sigma Force, even with their combined might." General Rildo put some emphasis on 'suppressed', as if hoping to scare him. But Trunks was confident that this guy would be nothing compared to what he was now.

"That may be so, but I've had my share of experiences when it comes to machines like you, and let me let you in on something, they always ended up as defects after meeting me." The general grinned, itching for a fight.

"Well then, let me tell you, I'm no machine, in fact I'm something much more! I am the ultimate creation of both mechanical and organic components. I am a Machine Mutant, the strongest of my kind and therefore the strongest in the universe! Created by the mighty Dr. Myuu himself! I AM-"

"An abomination." Trunks cut off Rildo before he could ramble on. Rildo's proud smirk morphed into a nasty frown. "Now that I know who created you, I'll go after your precious creator, if it means stopping anymore abominations like you from ever being created." Rildo's frown turned into a snarl.

"Inferior creature! You have no idea what you speak of! If course, how would such a simple minded being understand anything I've said? It's like staring into the sun, you can not see!" A crystal blue aura appeared around Rildo, as he charged forward. It was impressive speed, but Trunks had gone up against quicker opponents. Stepping to the side, he drove his knee into Rildo's abdomen, causing him to clutch his stomach and spit up blood. Trunks had not held back a single drop of his current strength with that strike. Rildo quickly retreated, panting.

"H-How?" Trunks said nothing, as he lifted his sword, and swung it down, creating a focused pressure of air that sliced through Rildo's arm.

"I told you. You'll soon become a defect." Holding his longsword in both hands, he charged in with a battle cry, ready to deliver the final blow. Rildo, scared out of his mind, realized that he needed to stop holding back. With a yell, his aura burst forward, and the metal from underneath him liquified and wrapped around his body. Trunks stopped right in his tracks.

 _'What's he doing?_ ' The metallic liquid around Rildo became solid once more, and with a new appearance, because how long has it been since Trunks encountered an enemy with the ability to transform?

Rildo was much taller now, practically a giant, his form completely smooth and a metallic silver, save for a couple of bolts attached to his frame. The Machine Mutant General smirked. "Now, the true battle begins. Come at me." His voice sounded more robotic than it did previously.

Trunks scoffed, and sliced through Rildo…only to see that his blade had completely melted, and had become apart of Rildo.

"Wha-gah!" Trunks was given a sucker punch straight to the face, courtesy of the general. Rildo grinned as began beating down on Trunks, before burying him many feet underground. He held up a hand, lit it with energy, and unleashed a ki blast he believed to be sufficient enough to kill the saiyan. An explosion followed afterward, and the mighty general simply watched the fireworks.

"Hm, not even a decent warmup. A shame, his genetic material could've been used to further the birth of Ba-" Trunks appeared out of the large crater not a moment later, barely a scratch on him.

"HOW?! That should've killed you." Trunks scoffed.

"This universe is a joke." With a shout, Trunks powered up into a Super Saiyan, his light so bright it could've incinerated solar systems.

"I'm through with your games! It ends here, machine!"

* * *

 _ **Alternate Timeline, Planet Petropia, Age 782**_

Broly cackled maniacally as he slammed Bardock into the side of a crystal canyon. The father of Goku groaned, nearly passing out, but of course, as per usual of the Legendary Super Saiyan nature, he would not let his opponent rest until he had his fun.

"Wake up, Kakarot. I know you can take more than this." when Bardock didn't respond, Broly snarled, reeling his fist back.

"I said UP, roach!" Bardock coughed up blood all over Broly's arm. He glared.

"My my, I don't remember seeing that look on your face ever, Kakarot. Seems you've finally learned how to hate me." Broly's grin reflected his mental state. "Not that it'll help you!" Broly began to repeatedly smash his fists into Bardock's torso, and Bardock could only scream in pain and rage as Broly hept laying it in to him.

 _'Damn it, this is bullshit! Kakarot, why didn't you finish this fool off when you had the chance?!'_ To Bardock, it was a true oddity that this timeline existed. Where the fuck was Beerus?! He should've showed up and wiped this clown from existence years ago in age 779.

' _Yeah fuck this.'_ Bardock thought. He focused on the energy within his Saiyan blood. _'I'm ending this now.'_

When Broly through the next punch, he was completely taken back by the fact that it was caught, so it was pretty excusable in his opinion when he didn't see the next punch coming as he crashed through the emerald towers. He got up, irritated by the fact that he had been caught off guard.

"Why you, you'll regret that-" Broly was once again silenced by leg meeting face. He got up once more, wiping away the blood that had resulted from a cut on his forehead.

"Alright shit face, I'm getting real sick of your crazy bullshit, so I'm just going to end this now. Got it?" Bardock instantly transformed into a Super Saiyan 3, wild aura sparking, while Broly was infuriated by Bardock's new found confidence.

"You think that just because you grew out your hair, you can beat me, Kakarot?!"

Bardock smirked. "I don't think-" Bardock's image became fuzzy, like an afterimage, but Broly felt the real thing when Bardock casually dug his fist into Broly's stomach.

"-I know." blood began pouring out of Broly's wound as he stumbled backwards.

"N-No. It wasn't s-supposed to be this way…." Bardock opened up his bloodied hand, from a fist to an open palm, and gathered his ki.

"Goodbye you freak of nature." Broly only saw a golden light, before he was nothing but ash.

* * *

 _ **Planet Namek, Universe 7, Age 762**_

Lottus descended on Namekian soil, practically shaking in his boots.

::Calm down Lottus, you're gonna be fine::

"Yeah, sure, I'm about to go up against a corrupted Son Goku. Oh, did I mention I have to help Frieza?"

There was a reason people feared Universe 7's history.

 _::You'll be fine. Look, you don't have to beat Goku, just weaken him a bit so that he'll revert back into a regular Super Saiyan, and hopefully regain some of his sanity::_

"How am I gonna do that?! I'm an ant compared to them!"

 _::You just need to make sure Frieza powers up to 100 percent, then the rest'll be easy. Just use the Kaioken::_ his commander tried to reassure him, but it didn't work.

"Ace, dude, you know I have trouble sustaining even a Kaioken x5! I can't do this!" Lottus had no idea what he was thinking when he accepted this mission.

 _::That doesn't matter, at their current damaged levels, their power levels have dropped considerably, no, even then they still won't be at 100 percent. You stand a chance, now go make me proud!::_ the line cut off, promptly ending their conversation. Lottus sighed in defeat. As he took off into the sky, he could see a giant ball of ki seemingly crashing down towards the planet.

 _'The Spirit Bomb. Okay, soon, I'm gonna have to go up against the power of Super Saiyan Goku. Damn, if I make it out of this, I'm totally gonna brag to the Taino Force.'_ oh yeah, they'd be worshipping him like he was the Kaioshin of Time. He could see it now….

Lottus hid behind a rock, watching the scene play out before him.

"Damn you Frieza….NOW I'M FURIOUS!" Lottus' blood ran cold as he felt the raw, dark energy unrestrain itself from the cages of Goku's body. He'd felt the power of a mastered Super Saiyan, which was much stronger, but the feeling of a novice one, especially a first timer, was so wild, so raw with emotion, that it made Lottus gulp. In addition to an ascended transformation along with the corrupted temporal energy taking over Goku? Hell, he'd rather commit suicide.

 _'Welp, here it goes.'_ with a shout, Lottus bursted into the Kaioken, multiplying his energy five times over, and then beginning his assault on the pure hearted saiyan.

Goku looked over to his left, surprised to see another sure of energy heading towards them. The culprit even kicked him in the face, and even if it did nothing to affect him, it was still very annoying. He grabbed his assailant's leg, his hold a little too harsh for Lottus' tastes.

"Look, I don't know who you are, but I'm in a very bad mood, so I suggest that you leave." with a grunt, Goku tossed the time patroller aside like a doll, paying him no mind.

 _'Wow, that was just plain rude….'_ Lottus thought. Nonetheless, he powered back up, red aura blazing, as he charged at Goku again.

Goku sucked his teeth, annoyed that this pest was getting in the way of his revenge. "I said knock it OFF!" he backhanded the saiyan descendent as if he was nothing but a child, to which Lottus could only block against. Even so, he was sent skidding back, leaving tracks in the earth as he now stood next to Frieza.

"Who are you? And why are you helping me?!" The space tyrant inquired. Lottus merely grunted a response.

"That doesn't matter, look how long will it take for you to power up to your maximum?"

Frieza blinked, surprised this nobody knew that he still had more power in store.

"I-It will only take a minute. But I won't have much time even then, so I'll acquire your assistance in defeating this monkey….not that you'd be of much use anyway." Frieza said dismissively. Lottus was a bit off put by the racist comment, but didn't say anything about it.

"Alright then, just do it! I'll hold him off as long as I can." Lottus' form burst into a red flame, before he began his assault on Goku once again. Goku, being far superior to the amateur, didn't need to use as much effort as Lottus through combo after combo.

"Fine. Since you won't see that what I'm doing is right, then you'll be going down with him!" Goku sucker punched Lottus right in the stomach, making him cough up blood. That punch had incredible force behind it. Lottus almost collapsed, but Goku stopped him by roughly grabbing him by the chin, pulling him forward so that they were seeing each other eye to eye.

"Why are you doing this? What has he ever done for you?" the angry saiyan asked. Lottus managed to say "Nothing. But it has to be this way?"

"Why? Why does it have to be this way? This monster has murdered at least billions in cold blood, and is even proud of it. You don't have to be like him, just let me kill him now. Even letting him power up is pointless." Goku tried to reason.

Lottus smirked. "Yeah you're right. Right about everything except for that last part." with a cry, Lottus recovered, surprising Goku and putting him in a chokehold.

"Now, Frieza!" Lottus hoped that this attack would be sufficient enough to at least drop Goku back into a vanilla Super Saiyan.

Frieza, now buffed up, grinned. "Hohoho, I am grateful to you, stranger. I'll let you become an officer of my army...that is, if you survive." Frieza charged up a ki blast from his open hand, launching the attack at both Goku and the time patroller.

 _BOOM!_

A huge explosion followed, and when some of the dust cleared, a spectator could see the giant crater that took up at least a tenth of the planet's surface area.

Lottus coughed, having taken some damage despite his trusty shield. Speaking of which….

 _'Where's Goku?'_ he thought.

A golden glow erupted like a volcano not that far away, the dust having cleared completely. A good look told the time patroller that Goku had reverted back to vanilla Super Saiyan, but was still being corrupted by that strange, purple ki.

 _'Well I'm in for hell.'_ thought Lottus. This was gonna be the worst Christmas ever….


End file.
